NASA is tracking the source of a small air leak on the International Space Station.
Crewmembers of the station’s current expedition 63 are not in immediate danger and will spend the weekend in the Russian segment of the orbiting laboratory, within the service module of Zvezda, NASA officials said in an update today (Aug. 20).
Astronauts can work in a shirtsleeve environment inside the station, but the surrounding lab is never completely airtight; a little air always leaks over time, which requires routine repressurization of nitrogen tanks shipped during freight missions, NASA added in the update. (Space.com has reached out to NASA for comment and will update this story as and when the agency responds.)
Related: The mission of Expedition 63 to the International Space Station (photos)
This leak was first detected in September 2019, when “there were indications of a slight increase above the standard rate for air leakage,” NASA said in the statement. “Because of routine station operations such as space weeks and arrivals and departures of space travel, it took time to gather enough data to characterize those measurements. That rate has increased somewhat, so teams are working on a plan to isolate, identify and potentially identify the source. repair. “
While the leak level is higher than normal, it is still within specifications for the station and poses no immediate danger to the crew, NASA officials stressed. Astronauts also handle lexicons during training for their stay on the space station, which are typically about six months long.
“All space station space will be closed this weekend so that mission controllers can accurately monitor the air pressure in each module,” NASA officials said. “The test presents no safety concerns for the crew. The test should determine which module is experiencing a higher than normal leak rate. The US and Russian specialists expect preliminary results to be available for review by the end of next week.”
NASA astronaut Chris Cassidy and his Russian cosmonaut crew members, Ivan Vagner and Anatoly Ivanishin, will remain in the Russian service module Zvezda from Friday evening until Monday morning (August 21 to August 24).
The three astronauts will “have a lot of space,” NASA officials said, noting that Zvezda was where crews first stayed when the ISS was under construction in the early 2000s. Furthermore, the Expedition 63 crew will have access to the Polish mini-research module and its Soyuz MS-16 crew if they stay in Zvezda.
Another Soyuz car that was attached to the orbiting lab got a leak back in 2018. Astronauts traced the cause to a small hole in the hull of the Soyuz.
Editor’s note: This is an evolving story and will be updated with new details as they become available.
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