Probably a mini-meteorite caused a leak in the Soyuz MS-22 spacecraft. Russia has now come up with a Plan B.
Because of technical problems on the International Space Station (ISS), Russia is considering launching a “rescue spacecraft” for its cosmonauts. The damage that may have been caused by a mini-meteorite is being checked, said the head of the Russian program for manned spaceflight, Sergei Krikalev. The start of the next Soyuz spacecraft, which was actually not planned until mid-March, may have to be brought forward to bring cosmonauts safely to Earth.
A leak was discovered last week in the Soyuz MS-22 spacecraft currently docked with the ISS. Images from the American space agency Nasa showed how large amounts of white particles – apparently the coolant – escaped the spacecraft like snow. The leak could have been caused by a mini-meteorite impact.
New plans because of the leak
On September 21, the two Russian cosmonauts Sergei Prokopjew and Dmitri Petelin flew the MS-22 to the ISS together with the American astronaut Frank Rubio. They were due to return to Earth on the same spacecraft after completing their mission in March. But now the leak could derail those plans.
When checking for damage, the main thing to determine is how hot the MS-22 can get, Krikalev told a NASA-organized press conference. If the MS-22 cannot be used for a manned return flight, another Soyuz spacecraft will be sent into space earlier than planned and without a crew to rescue the affected cosmonauts. In turn, the MS-22 would return to Earth without a crew in this case.
Cooperation between USA and Russia
There are currently four other astronauts on board the ISS: the Russian Anna Kikina, the American astronaut Nicole Mann and her compatriot Josh Cassada and the Japanese Koichi Wakata. They flew into space in October aboard a space capsule belonging to the US space company SpaceX, owned by multibillionaire Elon Musk.
Cooperation between Russia and the US on the ISS is one of the few cooperations between the two countries that did not end after the outbreak of war in Ukraine.
rfi navigation account, time 20 minutes23.12.2022, 23:01| Act: 12.23.2022, 23:01