Space News reports, “NASA and Roscosmos continue to disagree on the cause and severity of an air leak in the Russian segment of the International Space Station, one that NASA worries could lead to a “catastrophic failure” of part of a Russian module. That disagreement was brought to light during a brief meeting of NASA’s ISS Advisory Committee Nov. 13, which recounted a meeting of that committee with its Roscosmos counterpart in Moscow in September to discuss issues with the station.”
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Tag: ISS
Yearslong Leaks on International Space Station Deemed “Top Safety Risk”
Scientific American reports, “In the hostile conditions beyond Earth, a spacecraft is all that stands between an astronaut and certain death. So having yearslong seemingly unfixable leaks on the International Space Station (ISS) sounds like a nightmare scenario. It’s also a reality, one that a recent agency report calls ‘a top safety risk.’”
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NASA Looking at Options for Continuous Human Presence in LEO After ISS
Space News reports, “NASA is rethinking its desire for a ‘continuous human presence’ in low Earth orbit during the transition from the International Space Station to commercial platforms to include options where, at least temporarily, the agency may not always have astronauts in orbit. In a talk at the International Astronautical Congress here Oct. 16 on NASA’s development of a low Earth orbit microgravity strategy, Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy mentioned what she called the ‘elephant in the room’ of a desired continuous human presence in LEO. NASA has had astronauts in orbit on the ISS continuously since 2000.”
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As Space Station Ages, Air Leaks from Russian Section Cause Concern
The Washington Post reports, “Russia’s space agency has identified four cracks and about 50 other “areas of concern” in a Russian section of the International Space Station, leading NASA to classify the problem at its highest level of risk and study how to evacuate its astronauts in the case of an emergency. NASA has been so concerned with the cracks that officials have negotiated a deal with their Russian counterparts to seal off the small segment and keep the hatch to it open only during critical operations, the space agency said.”
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NASA Makes Progress Reducing ISS Air Leak
Space News reports, “NASA is playing down concerns raised in a recent report about a long-running air leak in the Russian segment of the International Space Station, saying they have recently reduced the rate of the leak. A report by NASA’s Office of Inspector General released Sept. 26 noted that, in June, the ISS program had elevated a leak in a section of the Russian Zvezda module “to the highest level of risk in its risk management system.” NASA uses a system where both the likelihood and severity of a risk is rated on a scale of one to five; the leak rated a five on both.”
Full Story (Space News)
Space Station Cracking Presents “Highest” Risk and Consequence Problem, NASA Confirms
Ars Technica reports, “US space officials do not like to talk about the perils of flying astronauts on the aging International Space Station, elements of which are now more than a quarter of a century old. However, a new report confirms that NASA managers responsible for operating the space station are seriously concerned about a small Russian part of the station, essentially a tunnel that connects a larger module to a docking port, which is leaking. … A new report, published Thursday by NASA’s inspector general, provides details not previously released by the space agency that underline the severity of the problem.”
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NASA’s Plan for Deorbiting ISS Contingent Upon Russia’s Plans
Ars Technica reports, “Assuming the ISS international partners will retire the laboratory as planned in 2030, the final deorbit maneuver could happen in early 2031. NASA would like to have the deorbit vehicle ready for launch in 2029, up to a year and a half before the space station’s final plunge. If these dates hold, the final crew for the ISS would likely launch in late 2029 and remain aboard the complex for a year, then come home before the final deorbit burns to guide the massive lab back into the atmosphere.”
Full Story (Ars Technica)
Boeing Starliner’s Future Is Unclear After Returning Without Astronauts
The New York Times reports that Boeing’s Starliner “has finally come home, but the two NASA astronauts who traveled in it to the International Space Station in June remain in orbit. Because of problems with Starliner’s propulsion system during its approach to the space station in June, NASA officials decided not to put the astronauts, Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore, on Starliner for the return trip. They will spend an additional five months on the space station as part of the crew before coming back to Earth around February in a spacecraft built and managed by SpaceX.”
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Uncrewed Boeing Starliner Set to Depart Space Station Friday Night
The New York Times reports, “Leaving behind the two NASA astronauts it took to the International Space Station three months ago, Boeing’s troubled Starliner spacecraft is set to begin its return to Earth on Friday evening. Six hours after it undocks from the station, it is to parachute to a landing at the White Sands Space Harbor in New Mexico. If bad weather or technical issues cause a delay, Starliner’s return could happen on Sept. 10, Sept. 14 or Sept. 18.”
Full Story (New York Times)
Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus Cargo Freighter Arrives at ISS
SPACE reports, “Northrop Grumman’s robotic Cygnus freighter reached the International Space Station (ISS) early Tuesday morning (Aug. 6), carrying about 4 tons of supplies to the orbiting lab. The Cygnus, which launched atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on Sunday (Aug. 4), was captured by the station’s robotic arm on Tuesday at 3:11 a.m. (0711 GMT), as the duo were flying over the South Atlantic Ocean.”
Full Story (SPACE)