Space Station Power Problems

Astronauts working outside the International Space Station just noticed a tear in one of its solar panels. Two of these 110-foot-long panels were due to be unfurled, and the first unrolled without a hitch, but NASA halted the second one when its spacewalkers saw the damage.

This caps a tough few days for the station, as astronauts also confirmed a problem with one of the motorized joints that turns the panels to face the Sun. NASA had suspected there was a problem, and astronaut Dan Tani confirmed it up close, noticing shards of metal scrapings throughout the joint. Next up: figuring out where they came from.—Gregory Mone

(Image credit: NASA)