A month after scientists had been confined to a single module of the International Space Station to detect the location of an above-average air leak, NASA is still clueless as to the actual location of the leak.
The information got here after the American and Russian astronauts aboard the ISS spent a second weekend confined to a single module not too long ago. This was executed to detect the portion of the station that was leaking some air into house. NASA astronaut Chris Cassidy and Roscosmos cosmonauts Anatoly Ivanishin and Ivan Vagner remained inside the Zvezda module in the Russian phase of the station from the night of 25 September till the morning of 28 September.
NASA astronaut Chris Cassidy operating checks on one of the house station’s modules. Image Credit: Twitter/@Astro_SEAL
Chris Cassidy tweeted that the hatches between different modules of the station had been all closed throughout this time to establish which module has the leak.
Both Moscow and Houston Mission Control Centers have been monitoring a tiny air leak for a number of months. A couple of weeks in the past our crew remoted in the Russian phase of @Space_Station and closed as many hatches as potential with the intention to establish the location of the leak. pic.twitter.com/euJfQ6wuvF
— Chris Cassidy (@Astro_SEAL) September 24, 2020
In a collection of tweets, Cassidy defined that the train did not pinpoint any possible location. He additionally stated that they’ve been checking all of the window seals for any indication of a leak utilizing an ultrasonic leak detector.
Strangely the knowledge didn’t level us to any specific location. Yesterday and at the moment, Anatoly and I’ve been checking all of the window seals (not #navyseals) for any indication of a leak utilizing an ultrasonic leak detector.
— Chris Cassidy (@Astro_SEAL) September 24, 2020
He insisted that there was no chance of hurt for the three astronauts but it surely was essential to detect the leak with the intention to cease invaluable air from going to waste.
So far no luck discovering the supply, but it surely seems to be like we are going to strive once more with the module isolation this weekend. No hurt or threat to us as the crew, however it is very important discover the leak we aren’t losing invaluable air.
— Chris Cassidy (@Astro_SEAL) September 24, 2020
After the isolation was over, Greg Dorth, supervisor of the ISS Program External Integration Office at NASA, stated in a news briefing that the group had did not discover a “clear indication of where the leak is”.
Dorth was briefing about the upcoming Northrop Grumman NG-14 Cygnus cargo mission to the station, which goes to be launched on 1 October from Virginia and arrive at the station on 4th October. Discovered first a yr in the past, scientists must find the leak quick, ideally earlier than the cargo car arrives there as the job might be simpler on a comparatively peaceable house station.