The European Space Agency (ESA) has been celebrating another milestone for the European Robotic Arm (ERA) that 'effortlessly' accomplished a test on the International Space Station last week.

HIGHLIGHTS
The ESA referred it as 'one little step for robot' but it spoke of its significance
On August 26, the test was carried out ahead of a spacewalk scheduled for today
The ERA was considered as the International Space Station's newest robotic arm

Cosmonauts roused the robotic arm from hibernation, which stretched it out and dragged down a payload regarding the size of a small bag from one side of the Nauka Multipurpose Laboratory Module to the other and back again.

The whole operation took almost six hours to complete. The ESA referred it as 'one little step for robot' however it spoke of its significance.

As per the agency, 'The test proved what the European Robotic Arm was eventually built for: to move and latch payloads and equipment outside the Russian segment of the Space Station with an accuracy of five millimeter, which saved time and work for the crew.'

On August 26, the test was carried out ahead of a spacewalk which was scheduled for later today.

Roscosmos astronauts Oleg Artemyev and Denis Matveev would get out of the station to keep working on the robotic arm after last month's spacewalk was cut short when among one of their spacesuits had battery power issues.

ESA has mentioned that 'Oleg and Denis would relocate the arm’s external control panel, take away some restraints close to the two end effectors or 'hands' of the arm, and test a rigidising mechanism which would facilitate the grasping of payloads.'

The ESA would be scrutinizing the standard of pictures those were captured by the cameras on the arm's 'elbow', to figure out if they were adequate to guide operations throughout the orbital night.

In 2021 it was launched, the ERA was considered as the International Space Station's newest robotic arm. The Canadian and Japanese robotic arms were already useful, however were unable to succeed in the Russian segment of the station.

Its home base was the Multipurpose Laboratory Module however it had been designed to anchor to the station at multiple points.

It would handle payloads of up to eight tonnes, which would withstand temperatures from between -150 and 120 degrees Celsius and it had the capability to move spacewalkers around the outside of the station just as cherrypicker crane.

Also Read: Russia is All Set to Leave International Space Station by 2024