Crew aboard International Space Station safe despite confirmed air leak
The crew aboard the International Space Station is not in any immediate danger despite a confirmed air leak.
The leak, which has yet to be patched, is coming from the Russian segment of the space station, Roscosmos, a Russian state space corporation confirmed Wednesday.
Specialists were tasked with monitoring the leak while the crew continued to “conduct work to locate and fix possible spots of the leak,” The Associated Press reported.
“There is no threat to the crew or the station itself,” the corporation said.
Here’s what we know.
When will the leak on the International Space Station be fixed?
It's not clear when the leak will be fixed, but Roscosmos did note that the crew has to spend more time repairing and maintaining the space outpost as it ages, AP reported.
Joel Montalbano, a NASA station project manager, noted that the “leak in the Russian segment has increased.” The leak remains small, posing no threat to the crew’s safety or vehicle operations, according to AP.
This is isn’t the first time that Russian space officials have spotted a leak. A leak and a leaky spot were reported in August 2020 and November of 2021 in different areas of the Russian section, AP reported.
Roscosmos and NASA have both said the leak reported then “posed no danger to the crew and didn’t impact operations on the station,” according to AP.
Russian officials have also reported a series of coolant leaks over the years, which have not impacted the crew or station operations, AP reported.
USA TODAY has reached out to NASA and Roscosmos for comment.
What crew is currently aboard the International Space Station?
There are currently seven astronauts from three different countries and one continent aboard the International Space Station.
NASA and its partners, which include Roscosmos, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, the European Space Agency, and the Canadian Space Agency, hope to continue operating the orbiting outpost until 2030, according to AP.
Contributing: The Associated Press