NASA downplays space station air leak

NASA is playing down concerns raised in a report about a long-running air leak that has plagued the International Space Station for five years, saying they have recently reduced the leak rate


Jul 2000: Russian space agency Roscosmos, docks Zvezda with two-element ISS already in orbit. Service Module is third oldest segment of space station

Sep 2019: Crew find 22mm-long crack on starboard side of Zvezda's hull. NASA observes doubling of leakage to about 0.54kg air/day

Oct 2020: NASA and Roscosmos identify three leak sources and seal two. Leak rate rises to 0.77kg air/day

Mar 2021: Crew repair crack and apply sealant to second suspected leak site. Discovery of multiple cracks and leaks continue in Service Module transfer tunnel

Apr 2024: Leak grows to nearly 1.7kg air/day


Air leak: In PrK transfer tunnel that separates docking port from Zvezda.
Sep 27: Repairs reduce leak rate to about 1.13kg air/day


RUSSIAN MODULES

Soyuz or Progress

Leak in transfer tunnel

Zvezda
Service module (delivered 2000)

MRM2 (Poisk) 
(2009)

Pirs: Provides airlock for cosmonaut spacewalks. Also serves as docking port for transport and cargo vehicles

Soyuz or Progress

Zarya 
(1998)

Rassvet (2010)
Cargo storage and fourth docking port on Russian segment

 
U.S./EUROPEAN/JAPANESE MODULES

Unity (1998)

Destiny (2001)

Kibo (2008)

Truss and solar arrays not shown


Sources: NASA, Russian Space Web, SpaceNews
Picture: Anatoly Zak
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