NASA has reported a short safety alert on the International Space Station (ISS) after a small air leak was detected. The situation happened on Friday and caused astronauts to take shelter for about two hours as a precaution. Space agencies quickly reviewed the issue to make sure the crew remained safe.
NASA Reverses Evacuation Alert for Astronauts on International Space Station
The astronauts were asked by NASA mission control to move into a SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft that is docked to the ISS. This step is known as a safe-haven procedure. It is only used when there is a possible risk and astronauts need to stay in a safer area for a short time. The crew followed instructions and stayed inside the spacecraft while engineers checked the situation.
After reviewing the air leak, NASA later reversed the order. The astronauts were told they could safely return to the space station. Officials explained that they were closely monitoring the air levels and found no immediate threat to the crew or the station systems. This helped bring the situation back to normal within a short time, linked with the Blue Origin rocket explosion launchpad.
Air Leak Linked to Russian Zvezda Module
The air leak is linked to the Russian-built Zvezda service module on the ISS. This part of the station has been experiencing small leaks for several months. NASA and Russia’s space agency Roscosmos have been working together to understand the cause and find a solution. Roscosmos confirmed that two small leaks were detected, but they said there was no danger to astronauts. One leak was already sealed, while work continued on the second, linked to China’s astronaut long-duration space mission.
According to officials, the air loss increased slightly on Friday. It went from about one pound of air per day to around two pounds per day. Even with this increase, both NASA and Roscosmos confirmed that the situation was still under control. They also stated that the spacecraft systems were not affected.
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The ISS currently has seven astronauts on board from different missions. This includes NASA’s Crew-12 team, European Space Agency astronauts, and Roscosmos crew members. Another group of astronauts had arrived earlier in November. All crew members remained safe during the entire incident and followed safety procedures properly.
There was also a disagreement between teams about how to repair the crack. Some Russian crew members suggested using tools to reach the damaged area. However, NASA officials did not support this method, which led to the decision to follow safety protocols and use the shelter procedure instead. NASA later confirmed that astronauts were allowed to return to normal operations inside the station after Roscosmos paused its repair activity. Officials said both space agencies are now working together on a safer and more careful approach to fix the issue.
Such safe-haven alerts are rare on the International Space Station. While minor issues and debris warnings have triggered similar procedures before, astronauts have never had to evacuate the ISS in its 27-year history. The station continues to operate normally as engineers monitor the situation closely. News source eTimes Pakistan.
