Astronauts Return to Space Station After Air Leak Scare
Four astronauts on the International Space Station took shelter in a spacecraft. This happened during a Russian repair attempt on an air leak.
NASA put the crew on evacuation alert as the leak got worse. The astronauts moved into a Crew Dragon spacecraft as a safety step.
Three Russian cosmonauts stayed on the station during the repair work. Russia's space agency paused repairs to take new measurements.
The shelter order was then lifted. The crew has since returned to normal work on the station.
The leak is in a tunnel area called the Zvezda service module. It has been a known problem since 2019.
The leak rate doubled to about 2 pounds of air per day earlier this week. Russia's space agency says the situation is not a danger to the crew. But NASA leaders have previously warned the leak could lead to a serious failure.
Key Terms 4
- International Space Station A large spacecraft where astronauts live and work in orbit
- Crew Dragon A spacecraft made by SpaceX used to carry astronauts
- Zvezda service module A Russian-built section of the space station used for key systems
- Roscosmos Russia's national space agency