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Russia’s Nauka space module scared the International Space Station on Thursday after its engines inexplicably ignited hours after docking in orbit.
The module’s “unplanned restart” inadvertently moved the entire ISS out of position for 47 minutes, according to NASA.
During a live broadcast of the event, Mission Control in Houston said NASA had “temporarily lost control of orientation as a result of inadvertent thrust fire” and that the error caused the alignment station “about 45 degrees”.
NASA then tweeted that Mission Control and the crew aboard the station had corrected the orientation and all systems were functioning normally. The ISS must be oriented precisely for its solar panels and radio equipment to function properly – and the station lost contact with ground control twice during the incident.
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“The crew was never in danger,” the space agency subsequently tweeted.
However, Dr Jonathan McDowell, a space expert at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, has expressed some concerns about the safety of astronauts in orbit.
“‘The crew was never in danger’ … I’m not convinced they understand the problem well enough to be able to say it now,” he wrote. “It’s the sort of thing that I think could – if mismanaged – result in the downfall of the station.”
Authorities did not immediately explain why the engines fired, but flight controllers overcame the situation by using thrusters on other components at the Russian station to counter the malicious engines.
The Nauka mission was delayed by a decade for a series of problems and suffered several “in-orbit hiccups” and engine problems on its way to its rendezvous with the ISS, according to the European Space Agency.
It was originally planned to go up in 2007.
In 2013, experts discovered contamination in its fuel system, which resulted in a long and expensive replacement. Other Nauka systems have also been modernized or repaired.
It finally arrived on Thursday as Russia hopes to revitalize its space industry to stay competitive with the United States and ahead of growing programs in other countries, including China.
In this photo provided by the press service of the Roscosmos space agency, the Nauka module is seen before docking to the International Space Station on Thursday, July 29, 2021. The long-delayed Russian laboratory module successfully docked at the International Space Station Thursday, eight days after launching from the Russian space launch facility in Baikonur, Kazakhstan. The 20 metric ton (22 ton) Nauka module, also known as the multipurpose lab module, docked at the orbiting outpost after a long journey and series of maneuvers. (Photo by the Roscosmos Space Agency press service via AP)
The module will become a permanent part of the orbital station, containing research and laboratory equipment.
The space station is currently operated by NASA astronauts Mark Vande Hei, Shane Kimbrough and Megan McArthur; Oleg Novitsky and Piotrevo from the Russian space company Roscosmos; Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Akihiko Hoshide and European Space Agency astronaut Thomas Pesquet.
The fiasco prompted NASA to postpone the scheduled launch of Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft from Cape Canaveral in Florida on Friday, but officials said there was no damage and praised the crew for remaining calm under pressure.
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“It takes thousands of people on the ground to keep the @Space_Station and the crew safe,” tweeted NASA Administrator Bill Nelson. “The ingenuity and dedication of the @NASA family never ceases to amaze me and, on days like this, I am more grateful than ever for their unparalleled expertise.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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