Astronauts report cracks in space station

408 kilometers above our head International Space Station (ISS) is a serious problem. Vladimir Solovyov, chief engineer of the Russian company Energia, told Reuters news agency that cracks had appeared in the Zaria constituency. The latter was the first structure to be sent into space as part of it ISS construction, In 1998.

What is the danger to the space station?

During various jobs Maintenance Are realized In the ISS For the sake of his pillow Life expectancyThe station’s equipment is aging. The cracks exposed by ISS residents are widening and causing security concerns for residents Astronauts Solovyov did not specify whether air leaks were found on the ship. ” This finding is very bad and predicts a possible expansion of the cracks over time. “, He added.

In the previous month, the station had already faced two dangerous situations Mooring of the Nauka block For the framework, this caused rotation due to ISS failure. The Russian space agency Roscosmos has detected a crash Pressure In Block star, Caused by possible air leaks.

No announcement has been made regarding Resolution This problem, it turns out, is worrying. The space station is officially expected to be operational by 2024, but various companiesThis, NASA or Roscosmos have announced their intention to extend their presence in the ISS.

Where was the air leak at the space station discovered?

In September 2019, an air leak inside the space station was measured, without the various groups that identified its appearance and succeeded. However, the wastage rate is too low to put them at risk! Last weekend, astronauts were trapped in a block for the second time to find her. Almost discovered!

By article Remy DecordReleased September 30, 2020

More than a year, air leak on the ship International Space Station Ground controllers are worried that despite the help of the astronauts on board, its source has yet to be discovered! The air leak, which had been under investigation for several weeks, did not pose an immediate risk to the crew. The air loss rate is not high enough for NASA to worry about and there is no risk to the health of the astronauts Complex orbit.

In September 2020, the Speed Air leakage increased 2.5 times to 1.4 Kilograms In 24 hours! An unprecedented situation since September 2019 has prevented NASA and Roscosmos ground officials from relocating crews in the Russian Svesta region to find the source of the leak in August 2020. The blocks of the orbital campus were closed so that task controllers could monitor again Atmospheric pressure In each block.

Is the leak site located in Zvezda block?

On Monday evening, NASA woke up crews to accurately locate the plane leak. From the ground up, data analysis of the tested modules overnight isolated the location of the leak in the main work area of ​​the Zvezda service module. As NASA explains, when using an ultrasonic league detector, the Svesta and Svesta columns were closed one by one behind the Birs and Boyce blocks and between the forward sections.

Throughout the night, pressure measurements were taken to isolate the source of this loss. Unfortunately, the amount of leakage identified overnight is said to be due to a temporary change in station temperature, while the overall rate of leakage remains unchanged.

Therefore studies are underway to find out the exact cause of the leak. This difficulty in detecting such a minimal air leak can be explained by the age of the station and its fault.Seal It would have evolved over the years. Zaria, the first batch of the ISS in November 1998 a Initiator Proton!