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An air leak in the International Space Station has forced its three-member crew to move to the Russian side of the orbiting lab while NASA performs tests to determine the source.
The crew and the station are “not in immediate danger” as the leak remains within safety specifications, the agency said. All hatches on the ISS will be closed during pressure tests to determine which one suffers a greater than normal loss, NASA said.
The station regularly oozes air into space, necessitating periodic re-pressurization of the nitrogen supplied during resupply trips. Last September, NASA and Russian space officials noticed an increase in the standard leak rate, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration said on Thursday in a report. declaration.
“This rate has increased slightly, so teams are working on a plan to isolate, identify and potentially repair the source,” NASA said, following a report released Thursday by RIA Novosti.
NASA Astronaut and Station Commander Chris Cassidy and Cosmonauts Ivan Vagner and Anatoly Ivanishin will remain in the Russian Zvedza Service Module from Friday evening to Sunday morning.
In August 2018, station managers detected a small hole on the Russian side of the ISS, which caused a small loss of pressure before it was repaired. The space station has been continuously crewed since November 2000.
– With the help of Jake Rudnitsky
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