This iconic photograph is still considered one of the most-terrifying space photos to date. Astronaut Bruce McCandless II NASA STS-41B Mission, February 1984, became the first human being to perform spacewalk without a safety tether linked to a spacecraft. He floated completely untethered in space
by Suspicious-Slip248
26 Comments
Wall-e taught us to always bring a fire extinguisher.
Why do they call it a spacewalk? It’s more of a spacefloat.
What was the backup plan? Did they have a tether and somebody suited up ready to go out and snag him?
Nevertheless, if some failure somehow jetted him off in some direction he couldn’t stop I guess that would be it.
Kinda wish he’d been waving at the camera.
And like most things we do in space, completely unnecessary
During that mission the earth revolved around his massive balls.
I don’t know why it would be terrifying. The plan was that, if anything happened to the MMU, to simply fly the Shuttle over and pick him up.
“Floating” aka hurtling through space at 17000 mph
I wouldn’t strap myself into the giant explosive death trap required to get those people into orbit in the first place. Some people’s risk tolerance is off the charts.
So there’s a list of terrifying space photos? This isn’t scary.
Why was MMU abandoned after a couple of flights? Why they don’t use it on ISS?
Amazing and terrifying. So much trust in the equipment.
Dude was like, byyyyyyyyyyyyye
Ground control to Major Tom…
And this is the historic moment when the word “Yeet” is properly defined
The guy has massive balls btw… respect 🫡
At least big heavy balls don’t make you fall in space.
This guy is a tough guy!! He’s a badass.
Floating untethered is easy. It’s getting back safely that’s the crux.
I don’t know if it’s this space walk or the couple times they did it on Apollo 40,000 miles from the moon and 200,000 miles from Earth! Granted the Apollo they were connected but that is a long way from anything!
The balls on that guy. I’d guess basically being robbed at gunpoint is a joke after you do this.
Even this photo isn’t as clear as the last one I commented on from like 69? Sus.
Hahaha people still believe this pic?
I’ve always considered this to be the bravest mission of aviation history. I never understood why it never carried the fame of other feats.
Open the pod bay doors, HAL.
Where are the stars? Any idea?
Acronyms, initialisms, abbreviations, contractions, and other phrases which expand to something larger, that I’ve seen in this thread:
|Fewer Letters|More Letters|
|——-|———|—|
|[EMU](/r/Space/comments/1qzhi8m/stub/o4av0dl “Last usage”)|Extravehicular Mobility Unit (spacesuit)|
|[EVA](/r/Space/comments/1qzhi8m/stub/o4au7fd “Last usage”)|Extra-Vehicular Activity|
|[MMU](/r/Space/comments/1qzhi8m/stub/o4b1y2d “Last usage”)|[Manned Maneuvering Unit](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manned_Maneuvering_Unit), untethered spacesuit propulsion equipment|
|[OMS](/r/Space/comments/1qzhi8m/stub/o4b5q6w “Last usage”)|Orbital Maneuvering System|
|[RCS](/r/Space/comments/1qzhi8m/stub/o4az4oe “Last usage”)|Reaction Control System|
|[SAFER](/r/Space/comments/1qzhi8m/stub/o4ayi4c “Last usage”)|[Simplified Aid For EVA Rescue](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simplified_Aid_For_EVA_Rescue)|
|STS|Space Transportation System (*Shuttle*)|
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