A warning was issued to astronauts on the International Space Station (ISS) to seek shelter and prepare for a potential evacuation as air leaks worsened in the Russian segment of the renowned space research facility.
Five astronauts, including three from the US, one from France, and a Russian cosmonaut, were directed by NASA mission control to take refuge in the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft, which was docked at the ISS on Friday afternoon.
Orders for shelter and potential evacuation are uncommon, and a complete evacuation of the space station has never been carried out since its launch into orbit in November 1998. NASA officials rescinded the order after two directives and allowed the crew to return to the ISS while Russia’s space agency Roscosmos investigated the air leaks.
Roscosmos halted repair work on the leaks once the astronauts re-entered the station. NASA spokesperson Bethany Stevens mentioned that the pause was necessary for further measurements and data analysis.
Stevens stated, “Roscosmos has temporarily suspended the structural repair activities within the Zvezda service module transfer tunnel, known as PrK, to assess additional measurements and data. Consequently, NASA instructed the crew inside the Dragon spacecraft to discontinue the safe haven procedures and resume planned operations on the International Space Station, anticipating collaboration with Roscosmos to address the leaks.”
Roscosmos confirmed the detection of two leaks on the ISS, assuring that they do not pose an immediate threat to the crew or the station’s onboard systems. The first leak was promptly sealed, and preparations are underway to mend the second one.
The ongoing air leaks issue at the ISS, responsible for the emergency orders, has persisted for at least seven years and is localized in the Zvezda service module transfer tunnel connecting the Russian segment to the rest of the space station.
Efforts are ongoing to resolve the matter permanently, with Stevens expressing commitment to collaborating with Russian counterparts and the international community supporting the space station.
Initially reported to NASA in September 2019, the air leaks have remained a persistent concern. The ISS comprises multiple American and Russian segments, with additional modules added by the European and Japanese space agencies in 2008.
Currently, the space station accommodates seven astronauts from two different missions. The Crew-12 team consists of NASA’s Jack Hathaway, Jessica Meir, the European Space Agency’s Sophie Adenot, and Roscosmos’s Andrey Fedyaev, who arrived in February. Additionally, American Christopher Williams and Russians Sergey Kud-Sverchkov and Sergei Mikayev joined in November.
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