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Space Station Leak Found, Fixed

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the no-more-whooshing dept.

Rommel writes "NewScientist.com is reporting that the cause of the leak in the International Space Station has been found and fixed. The leak was found in a hose in the Destiny lab module. The hose was used to equalize pressure and eliminate fog between two panes of a window. While the leak was so slow it was unlikely to pose a direct threat to the crew for months to come, some equipment on the ISS is only certified to operate above a certain air pressure. The leak was originally mentioned on Slashdot a few days back."

5 of 225 comments (clear)

  1. I would like to think... by Orion442 · · Score: 0, Interesting

    If I was on the space station and there was a leak, that fucker would be found a lot sooner than a week.

  2. Re:Didn't read the article... by 0123456 · · Score: 4, Interesting

    If it was a bigger problem it would probably be easier to find. If you were losing 1 psi an hour from a significant leak, it wouldn't be hard to track down even without any special instruments.

  3. Re:Didn't read the article... by zelphior · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Not even all that uncomfortable. IIRC, NASA originally planned on only pressurizing space capsules to around 5psi or pure oxygen. This is the same as the partial pressure of oxygen in our atmosphere, so the astronots didn't get high on O2 or anything. That's why the Apollo 1 fire was so bad.

    Of course, I think the ISS uses normal 14.7psi of normal earth air, so they'd have to make the air a lot more Oxygen rich if there was a leak. Anyways, just my 2 cents.

    Can't remember any sources exactly, so feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.

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  4. O2 on Everest is sort of a Catch-22 (OT) by caveat · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I was reading a good page on low-pressure physiology (had to do witk HALO skydiving) where they did the calculations and figured out you're about equally screwed with or without O2 on Everest - if you don't bring O2, you're naturally sluggish and slow, but if you do, you have a hard time getting enough extra energy to make up for the extra weight you have to carry. There is a "sweet spot", but go very far outside of it and you might as well just breathe the thin air.

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  5. Built by Americans, Fixed by Foreigners by TubeSteak · · Score: 2, Interesting
    US mission commander Michael Foale and flight engineer Alexander Kaleri repaired the crack soon after it was discovered in the US module early on Monday, the officials told news agencies.
    Michael Foale: considers Cambridge, England to be his hometown & came to the U.S. in '83
    Alexander Yurievich Kaleri: Special Honors: Hero of the Russian Federation
    [Insert Soviet Russia Jokes Below]
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