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After Years of Air Leaks, Russia Is Reportedly Closing Off Part of the ISS for Good
Gizmodo • • health
Key Points:
- Russia’s space agency, Roscosmos, is reportedly preparing to permanently shut down the PrK transfer tunnel on the International Space Station (ISS) to isolate a persistent air leak first detected in 2019.
- Despite multiple repair attempts by NASA and Roscosmos, the leak worsened over time, leading to increased risk and disagreements between the two agencies on the cause and repair methods.
- The upcoming Progress MS-36 cargo mission will bypass the Zvezda module and unload supplies through the Poisk module due to the closure of the PrK tunnel hatch.
- The decision to seal off the tunnel follows a contentious repair plan involving cutting into the tunnel, which NASA opposed due to safety concerns, and reportedly came after NASA pressured Roscosmos to take this action.
- Closing the tunnel will restrict Russian cosmonauts’ access and require alternative docking strategies, underscoring the challenges of maintaining the aging ISS infrastructure.
