NASA: 'Expedition 63' crew members to inspect cabin air leak onboard ISS

At least three Expedition 63 crew members onboard International Station (ISS) will spend weekend inside orbiting Russian segment of lab investigating source of a cabin air leak, NASA and Russian ncy Roscosmos said in an official press release. Commander Chris Cassidy and crewmates Ivan Vagner and Anatoly Ivanishin would stay in ISS’s Zvezda service module for two days from August 22 to August 24.

station’s atmosphere is maintained at pressure comfortable for crew members, and a tiny bit of that air leaks over time, requiring routine re-pressurization from nitrogen tanks delivered on cargo resupply missions, NASA wrote in its press release.

Furr, it explained that due to air leak, all stations would be sealed this weekend so mission controllers can inspect air pressure in each of ISS’ modules. While test wouldn’t have any safety issues for crew onboard, team will have to elaborately determine a higher-than-rmal leak rate in segment that can pose risk. In September 2019, NASA and its international partners suspected indications of a slight increase above standard cabin air leak rate. 

[Russian cosmonaut and Expedition 57 Flight Engineer Sergey Prokopyev exercises inside Zvezda Service Module, part of International Station's Russian segment. Credit: NASA]

Because of routine station operations like walks and craft arrivals and departures, it took time to gar eugh data to characterize those measurements, NASA said in release.

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Zvezda’s human living quarters

While rate had increased in recent weeks, teams are working a plan to isolate, identify, and potentially repair source. However, ncy clarified that leak presented immediate danger to crew or station. Zvezda’s human living quarters activated permanent habitation nearly 20 years ago on vember 20, 2020, when Expedition 1 crew arrived at ISS. Cassidy, Vagner, and Ivanishin also will have access to  Poisk mini-research module and ir Soyuz MS-16 crew ship, as per NASA.

[ Zvezda Service Module was first fully Russian contribution to International Station. Credit: NASA]

[ International Station Zvezda Service Module Training Mockup. Credit: NASA]

[ Expedition 63 crew will spend weekend in Russian segment’s Zvezda service module during a cabin air leak test. Credit: NASA]

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