Reuters reports that Russia said Wednesday that “it would launch another Soyuz spacecraft next month to bring home two cosmonauts and a U.S. astronaut from the International Space Station after their original capsule was struck by a micrometeoroid and started leaking last month.” The leak came from “a tiny puncture – less than 1 millimetre wide – on the external cooling system of the Soyuz MS-22 capsule, one of two return capsules docked to the ISS that can bring crew members home.” Russia said a new capsule, Soyuz MS-23, “would be sent up on Feb. 20 to replace the damaged Soyuz MS-22, which will be brought back to Earth empty.” Russian cosmonauts Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitry Petelin and U.S. astronaut Francisco Rubio “had been due to end their mission in March but will now extend it by a few more months and return aboard the MS-23.”
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Tag: Rescue
NASA Releases RFI for Astronaut Rescue Services
ExecutiveGov reports that NASA “is seeking industry input on capabilities and ideas for astronaut crew rescue services in support of the space agency’s Commercial Crew Program and Exploration Ground Systems missions.” NASA “said it is considering a commercial offering for the required services during launch, free flight and landing phases of the programs such as real-time communication with the agency, crew retrieval and basic medical care while in transport.”
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