More leaks found in Russian Zvezda module on ISS
Earlier this week Russian astronauts located and patched three more leaks in the 20+ year old Russian Zvezda module on ISS.
Prior to this week’s discovery, the recent patching done by Russian astronauts had reduced the air loss by about half. They need to do another seal test of Zvezda to see if these newer patches have reduced it further.
The report at the link from Russia is as usual very vague. No photos of any of the leaks have been released, by either Russia or NASA. No cause either has been described. This lack of information suggests that the leaks represent a more systemic problem, possibly related to stress fractures from age and wear. If so, it also suggests that Zvezda is nearing its pull-date. How this central module will be replaced from the station remains a major mystery.
Above all, this puts some urgency to the launch of newer modules, such as those being built by the private company Axiom.
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Earlier this week Russian astronauts located and patched three more leaks in the 20+ year old Russian Zvezda module on ISS.
Prior to this week’s discovery, the recent patching done by Russian astronauts had reduced the air loss by about half. They need to do another seal test of Zvezda to see if these newer patches have reduced it further.
The report at the link from Russia is as usual very vague. No photos of any of the leaks have been released, by either Russia or NASA. No cause either has been described. This lack of information suggests that the leaks represent a more systemic problem, possibly related to stress fractures from age and wear. If so, it also suggests that Zvezda is nearing its pull-date. How this central module will be replaced from the station remains a major mystery.
Above all, this puts some urgency to the launch of newer modules, such as those being built by the private company Axiom.
Readers!
My annual February birthday fund-raising drive for Behind the Black is now over. Thank you to everyone who donated or subscribed. While not a record-setter, the donations were more than sufficient and slightly above average.
As I have said many times before, I can’t express what it means to me to get such support, especially as no one is required to pay anything to read my work. Thank you all again!
For those readers who like my work here at Behind the Black and haven't contributed so far, please consider donating or subscribing. My analysis of space, politics, and culture, taken from the perspective of an historian, is almost always on the money and ahead of the game. For example, in 2020 I correctly predicted that the COVID panic was unnecessary, that the virus was apparently simply a variation of the flu, that masks were not simply pointless but if worn incorrectly were a health threat, that the lockdowns were a disaster and did nothing to stop the spread of COVID. Every one of those 2020 conclusions has turned out right.
Your help allows me to do this kind of intelligent analysis. I take no advertising or sponsors, so my reporting isn't influenced by donations by established space or drug companies. Instead, I rely entirely on donations and subscriptions from my readers, which gives me the freedom to write what I think, unencumbered by outside influences.
You can support me either by giving a one-time contribution or a regular subscription. There are four ways of doing so:
1. Zelle: This is the only internet method that charges no fees. All you have to do is use the Zelle link at your internet bank and give my name and email address (zimmerman at nasw dot org). What you donate is what I get.
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4. Donate by check, payable to Robert Zimmerman and mailed to
Behind The Black
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Cortaro, AZ 85652
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Photos of the cracks have been leaked, but as far as I can tell, not officially released anywhere. The only ones I’ve seen are reposts in a non-public area, so I can’t share, but they certainly look like stress fractures to me.
David,
Since you cannot share the photos, can you please tell us if all the cracks are or around the aft docking port?
The pictures I saw were the result of very close up microscopic shots, if there was any indication of where in the module they were taken, it was in Cyrillic, which I don’t read.
David Eastman: All public statements so far have strongly suggested (but not confirmed) the cracks were in the aft section of Zvezda, where the docking port is.
What is the history of the (re)boosting. I know the Zvezda module initially was used as it has a propulsive system but I remember reading that (re)boosting was being done by visiting craft. Were these (re)boosts done through the suspected aft section docking port?
I’m sure NASA will get nothing but obfuscation from the Russians so they won’t try too hard to get to the bottom of this. Maybe Congress can make some useful noise for once.
pawn: From what I understand, Zvezda has engines and has been used routinely to raise ISS’s orbit. And yes, those engines are in the aft section, surrounding the docking port.
As for the Russians hiding things, they might be hiding things from the public, but I am certain they are not hiding things from NASA, which has people on board ISS and will demand to know what’s what. NASA however is a government agency, like Roscosmos, and is thus prone to the same secrecy. In fact, I am sure NASA and Roscosmos are working together to keep this whole story out of the press.
As for Congress, don’t make me laugh.
Russia has a Space Shuttle they stole it from us
Pawn: You are correct. The reboost engines are in the aft section of the Service Module. They are used whenever a Progress vehicle is not docked to that port. However, when a Progress vehicle is docked to that port, they use the Progress engines instead. This is because 1) The Progress is blocking the Service Module’s engines, and 2) It saves cycles on the Service Module’s engines, extending their on-orbit life.
This is becoming alarming: I do hope this lingering, slow motion problem doesn’t ease us into catastrophe.