An air leak has been detected from the Russian side of the International Space Station on Wednesday night. However, NASA has assured that the leak is minute and poses no threat to the astronauts who are currently working on repairing this miniscule operational hazard. The hole apparently was discovered by the flight controllers in Moscow and Houston who allowed the astronauts to sleep as they were certain of no pertinent danger. Though they are in control of the situation now, on inspection, the astronauts were thrown in a frenzy to figure out the cause of it. The crew, it is reported, was forced to check for the source of the leak by closing separate modules on the space station and finding which of them may be damaged.
Reports till now affirm that the leak has possibly been caused by a micrometeorite strike which resulted in a small loss of cabin pressure. The leak, which is about 2 millimeters, has been located in a side compartment of Soyuz Space capsule attached to the station.
“As flight controllers monitored their data, the decision was made to allow the Expedition 56 crew to sleep since they were in no danger,” the agency said in an update. “When the crew was awakened at its normal hour this morning, flight controllers at Mission Control in Houston and at the Russian Mission Control Center outside Moscow began working procedures to try to determine the location of the leak.”
Depressurisation is undoubtedly among the most dangerous things that could possibly occur on board the ISS. But if NASA is to be believed, the leak is repairable from within and doesn’t require any scientist to be sent back or to. It is, however, unclear what is to be done if the danger persists. But the spaceship has a competent crew who have detailed and practiced responses to any further problems that may arise.
