NASA is trying to crush the conspiracy theories about the leak of the space station

Two weeks after a mysterious pressure leak took place on the International Space Station, wild theories about sabotage persist, and the rumors have become so absurd that NASA and the Russian space company Roscosmos are now trying to quell the rumors.

In a joint statement released today, NASA and Roscosmos say the US space agency is working closely with Russia to determine the cause of the leak. The statement also notes that no information will be published until the end of the investigation by the Russians, despite galloping speculation in the Russian press that the leak was caused by one of NASA's astronauts in the US. 'space.

At a teleconference yesterday, NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine and Roscosmos general manager Dmitry Rogozin affirmed the need for closer interaction between NASA technical teams. and Roscosmos to identify and eliminate the causes of the leak. of the Soyuz survey conducted by Roscosmos, "according to the statement. "They recognized that the entire crew was dedicated to the safe operation of the station and all spacecraft moored to ensure mission success."

NASA and Roscosmos first detected a loss of pressure from the space station around 7 pm ET on Wednesday, August 29, suspecting that there was some leakage on the ISS. The air escaped at a rate so slow that the flight controllers chose not to wake the crew. The next day, the six astronauts aboard the ISS found the leak in a small hole inside one of the two Russian Soyuz capsules moored to the space station – the vehicles used to bring the crew to the ground. This particular Soyuz has been on the ISS since June 8 and the hole was found in one of the modules dropped before the Soyuz entered the Earth's atmosphere during its descent. The room is not necessary for complete return to the floor.

The hole was repaired successfully on Thursday, August 30, but the mystery about the origin of the hole remained. The ideas of sabotage in space were first suggested by Roscosmos, who formed a state commission to shed light on the leak. After ruling out the theory of the impact of micrometeoroids, Rogozin said the hole had been drilled by a drill. (NASA so-called published and then removed photos from the holeRogozin noted that Roscosmos would "find out whether there was an accidental defect or deliberate deterioration and where it was done – on Earth or in space." according to a report in TASS.

Russia has a notorious record of blaming missiles on spacecraft for possible sabotage. This type of behavior is not new. However, rumors about the leak appear to have worsened in recent weeks. As stated first by Ars Technica, a story published in Russia Kommersant have cited anonymous sources of Roscosmos, who claimed that investigators were investigating the possibility that the hole was caused by a NASA astronaut. The theory was that one of the three American crew members had fallen ill, so one of the astronauts caused the leak to force a quick evacuation to Earth.

Image: NASA

In fact, the rumors got so much worse that the ISS commander, Drew Feustel, had to deny that anyone aboard the station was involved one way or the other. "I can say unequivocally that the crew had nothing to do with it in orbit, no doubt, and I think it's really shameful and somewhat embarrassing to waste some time talking of something in which the crew was involved, "said Feustel. in an interview from the space with ABC News, as reported by CBS.

Despite presenting the sabotage theory for the first time, Rogozin criticized the journalists for speculating on the cause of the leak. "Recent rumors and rumors circulating about the ISS incident hinder the work of the Roscosmos experts and aim to hijack the friendly relationship between the crew members of the space station" said Rogozin on Facebook. "All statements quoting anonymous sources are inadmissible until the Roscosmos special commission concludes its work," he added.

In the meantime, there is another, more plausible theory that is still on the table: the hole was made by a field worker, who then patched it before launching the Soyuz on June 6th. Then, somehow, the patch was removed, exposing the hole. Russian Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Borisov said that defective work on Earth has not been excluded, according to the TASS.

In a previous statement on September 5, Roscosmos announced its intention to complete its investigation this month. "All findings and decisions will be announced after the completion of the commission's work," according to the company.