ISS Crew Temporarily Evacuated Due to Air Leak in Zvezda Module

NASA temporarily moved its astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) into an evacuation spacecraft on Friday after an air leak was detected in one of the modules, while Russian cosmonauts worked to repair it. According to NASA spokeswoman Bethany Stevens, “out of an abundance of caution,” members of the agency’s Crew-12 mission were instructed to don their spacesuits and take shelter inside a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft – a vessel used for transport missions to and from the ISS – while repairs were carried out. Russian space corporation Roscosmos said that two potential leak sites had been identified during routine pressure checks inside the transfer chamber of the Zvezda service module, known as PrK, a key component of the station. One was quickly fixed using a special sealant, while preparations began to repair the second site in the conical section of the compartment. Stevens said that NASA and Roscosmos have long monitored cracks in the Zvezda module and have been working together to determine the cause of recurring pressure losses. She added that Roscosmos decided to undertake an extensive repair operation after the latest leak was detected. Reuters, citing a senior NASA official, reported that the leak rate had doubled from roughly half a kilogram of air per day to nearly a kilogram earlier this week. Roscosmos stressed that the situation posed no threat to either the crew or the station’s onboard systems, adding that pressure aboard the ISS remained stable and within normal operating parameters. In a follow-up post, Stevens said that Roscosmos had paused work on the remaining leak while specialists analyzed additional measurements and data. Following the decision, NASA instructed its astronauts to leave the Dragon spacecraft and resume normal operations aboard the station. Launched in 1998, the ISS is operated by five space agencies from Russia, the US, Europe, Japan, and Canada, with day-to-day operations coordinated by NASA and Roscosmos. Seven crew members are currently aboard the station, including Russian cosmonauts Sergey Mikaev, Sergey Kud-Sverchkov, and Andrey Fedyaev; NASA astronauts Chris Williams, Jessica Meir, and Jack Hathaway; and European Space Agency astronaut Sophie Adenot.