Temperature in leaking Soyuz capsule drops
According to Russia’s state-run press TASS, the temperature in its leaking Soyuz capsule on ISS has now dropped to between 50 to 54 degrees Fahrenheit.
The language of the report suggests this temperature drop was the result of actions by Russia’s mission control, but that is decidedly unclear. With the thermal control system now depressurized, the capsule’s temperature could fluctuate a lot, depending on whether it is in shadow or sunlight, a condition dependent on the overall orientation of ISS itself.
A second TASS report today said that two Russian working groups are reviewing the data, and will decide around December 27th what the next step will be, including the possibility of launching a Soyuz capsule unmanned to replace this capsule.
“I believe that at the end of December, somewhere on the 27th [of December], specialists – and now two working groups have been set up – will decide on how we will resolve this situation,” [Yuri Borisov] the Roscosmos head, said in an interview with the daily Izvestia.
There is plenty of time for making decisions and “there is no hurry,” Borisov stressed.
What Borisov was really saying is that there is no reason to panic, but action must be taken without unnecessary delay.
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According to Russia’s state-run press TASS, the temperature in its leaking Soyuz capsule on ISS has now dropped to between 50 to 54 degrees Fahrenheit.
The language of the report suggests this temperature drop was the result of actions by Russia’s mission control, but that is decidedly unclear. With the thermal control system now depressurized, the capsule’s temperature could fluctuate a lot, depending on whether it is in shadow or sunlight, a condition dependent on the overall orientation of ISS itself.
A second TASS report today said that two Russian working groups are reviewing the data, and will decide around December 27th what the next step will be, including the possibility of launching a Soyuz capsule unmanned to replace this capsule.
“I believe that at the end of December, somewhere on the 27th [of December], specialists – and now two working groups have been set up – will decide on how we will resolve this situation,” [Yuri Borisov] the Roscosmos head, said in an interview with the daily Izvestia.
There is plenty of time for making decisions and “there is no hurry,” Borisov stressed.
What Borisov was really saying is that there is no reason to panic, but action must be taken without unnecessary delay.
Readers!
Please consider supporting my work here at Behind the Black. Your support allows me the freedom and ability to analyze objectively the ongoing renaissance in space, as well as the cultural changes -- for good or ill -- that are happening across America. Fourteen years ago I wrote that SLS and Orion were a bad ideas, a waste of money, would be years behind schedule, and better replaced by commercial private enterprise. Only now does it appear that Washington might finally recognize this reality.
In 2020 when the world panicked over COVID I wrote that the 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. Only in the past year have some of our so-called experts in the health field have begun to recognize these facts.
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.
2. Patreon: Go to my website there and pick one of five monthly subscription amounts, or by making a one-time donation.
3. A Paypal Donation or subscription:
4. Donate by check, payable to Robert Zimmerman and mailed to
Behind The Black
c/o Robert Zimmerman
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You can also support me by buying one of my books, as noted in the boxes interspersed throughout the webpage or shown in the menu above.
“There is plenty of time for making decisions and “there is no hurry,” Borisov stressed.”
If this Soyuz is serving as the lifeboat for three astronauts, I don’t see the justification for this statement, since the Russians are evidently not able to rely on it being fully and safely functional.
Ray Van Dune wrote: “If this Soyuz is serving as the lifeboat for three astronauts, I don’t see the justification for this statement, since the Russians are evidently not able to rely on it being fully and safely functional.”
Based upon how very little we know about this incident and how much contradictory information is still flying around about it, I think that the 72-hour rule is appropriate for these reports and for comments. I thought of making this comment last Friday but decided to apply the rule to my own comment.
We do not know whether reports about the spacecraft’s temperature are due to the anomaly or if they are due to the ground controllers attempting to trouble shoot the problem, as stated in the linked news report. Other reports also seem to be nebulous in their sources and contradictory with each other. As far as I know, the affected system in the service module has not yet been reported. I am not yet convinced that this Soyuz is an unsafe lifeboat or even that it is unsafe for a normal return to the planet.
In the early years of ISS construction, there was still a plan and a contract to supply a separate “lifeboat” return spacecraft in case some event such as this caused one of the regular spacecraft to become disabled. That plan was scrapped to save about 1% of the budgeted construction costs. In a way, it is like skipping the 10¢ fuse.
Currently, an emergency on ISS becomes something of a Hobson’s Choice: near-certain death in orbit, or a bit better chance on a malfunctioning spacecraft.
“Out Of Gas”
Firefly 25 October 2002
Edward, you say: “I am not yet convinced that this Soyuz is an unsafe lifeboat or even that it is unsafe for a normal return to the planet.”
My point was not that I was so convinced. My point was that the Russian seemed convinced of the opposite.
Ray Van Dune,
Is there a reason that they should not be, or are you making assumptions about the situation?