This hole drilled in the Russian probe Soyuz may have done more damage than expected – BGR

The story of the mysterious hole found on a spacecraft attached to the International Space Station continues to be stranger. In a new report of the Russian press group TASSanyone who pierced the hole could have damaged more than the hull itself.

Quote anonymous sources, TASS reports that when the hole was found, the crew aboard the ISS carried out a detailed analysis of the damage. One of the tools used was an endoscope, which they used to see what was on the other side of the hole. When they returned the images and video to Earth, the Russian Space Agency discovered damage to a component located on the other side of the hole. Big yikes

So, what is damaged next to the hull? Oh, you know, nothing. Just the anti-meteorite shield that, as its name indicates, protects against rocks

"Boreholes were found not only inside the spacecraft compartment, but also on the anti-meteorite shield that covers the spacecraft from the outside and is installed 15 millimeters the pressure hull, "said the source. TASS. "The top of the drill went through the pressure hull and hit the outer hull that was not gastight."

It's fantastic, and I'm sure (if that's true) that all of this is very comforting for the crew members who have to descend to Earth in the not-so-distant future. The spacecraft is basically the "lifeboat" of the crew aboard the space station if something goes awry. Having a hole in the hull of your lifeboat – even a patched hole – is not a great feeling.

the TASS The report offers some more details about the investigation of the location and timing of drilling. According to the source, all components of the spacecraft were photographed during the final assembly process and no damage is present in these photos. This means that the hole was drilled either just before the end of the work on the spacecraft or during its long period of inspection.

Russia has still not revealed whether it has a suspect in the investigation or whether it has more details about the perpetrators. Earlier reports suggested that the culprit may have been found inside the country, but nothing has surfaced since the rumors began to turn.

Image Source: NASA