The experts found one more crack at the International Space Station and believe that there is still another.
Vladimir Solovyov, head of the Russian section of the ISS, told a Russian TV news channel that occupants of the orbital platform now require a microscope to detect suspicious leaks.
IN SPACE - MAY 23: In this handout image provided by the European Space Agency (ESA) and NASA, the International Space Station and the docked space shuttle Endeavour orbit Earth during Endeavour's final sortie on May 23, 2011 in Space. Italian astronaut Paolo Nespoli captured the first-ever images of an orbiter docked to the International Space Station from the viewpoint of a departing vessel as he returned to Earth in a Soyuz capsule.
In a translation given b y TASS, Solovyov said they have identified one spot and expect another where some form of leak occurs."
He stressed that air loss is negligible because of the crack. Solovyov, an ex-astronaut, added a minute decrease in air pressure within the floating space lab.
This leak is like drilling the hull with a 0.2 mm diameter tool. Solovyov remains unsure that there are even such drills in the household. As for the leak it creates, he pointed out that their space air pressure is 750 mmHg. He said his suspected crack triggers them to lose 0.3 to 0.4 mmHg every day, the officer said. He explained that when pressure decreases at 0.5 to 1 mmHg every minute, the emergency leak begins.
Of course, they are working on it. The cosmonauts fully understand that these locations are at the problem. In truth, Solovyov said these leaks are not airtight. He said that there may be certain other places. But there is no horror in that, as the mission leader, he can claim it accountable.
The Leak
While the void was identified in 2019, astronauts paid little attention to it for a while while working on much more urgent activities. But the air pressure had fallen at a higher pace in August 2020, and the team wanted to go search for the leak.
During a contact with the ISS on September 29, the Mission Control Center confirmed a potential new air leak in the Zvezda module. It is unknown what portion of the module exactly leaks air.
The ISS crew announced on October 15 that the potential leak site was located; the crack looked like a jagged scratch about 2-3 cm in duration, according to cosmonaut Anatoly Ivanishin. It was later discovered by cosmonaut Sergey Ryzhikov that the crack was only 4.5 cm deep.
Russian cosmonauts photographed the alleged leak site outside the ISS in late 2020 but found no hull damage at the location where the crack was meant to be.
Why is There a Crack in ISS?
According to cosmonaut Ivan Vagner last October 2020, the crack discovered aboard the International Space Station (ISS) and the air leak it triggered could indicate the normal wear and tear of the orbital outpost after 20 years of service.
According to the TASS News Service, twenty years is currently an absolute milestone for all space stations today. Everything is shifting, Vagner said, and something needs greater focus.
Again, as we go back to the leak, the cosmonaut claims that somehow the hull is already starting to crack and scrape. He said that they have already seen the limits of the service life of the ISS structure.
The cosmonaut said that specialists from the Russian space agency Roscosmos acknowledged that the operation of the space station should be prolonged.
According to the Russian cosmonaut, the experience of running the ISS would make it possible to predict the service life of potential space stations and decide the quality of the materials from which they will be made.
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