Astronauts close Russian module because of an unusual smell
Astronauts close Russian module because of an unusual smell
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unusual smell on the international space station
Last weekend, Russian cosmonauts on the International Space Station (ISS) were forced to temporarily areolate a segment of the Orbit laboratory after they had found an "unusual smell", which was based on an incoming cargo ship called Progress 90. This was shared by NASA on Sunday.causes of the smell
The smell-as well as "drops", which the cosmonauts observed-probably resulted from the "extractor of materials in the (Russian) progress spaceship," said NASA in a message to CNN on Monday afternoon. Kelly O. Humphries, the Johnson Space Center news chief of NASA in Houston, calmed down: "There are no concerns for the crew."
The unmanned Progress-capsule Fuel, food and other supplies can be transported to ISS, uses a fuel called asymmetrical dimethylhydrazine and an oxidizing agent called nitrogen tetroxide. Both are highly toxic to humans. But Humphries confirmed that the fuels were not the cause of the problem.
phenomenon of degap
"DEFASE" is a phenomenon occurs when man -made objects leave the protective case of the earth's atmosphere and in the radiation The surrounding area of space occurs where the temperatures from 121 to minus 158 degrees Celsius can vary. According to Humphries, the possibly devastating "materials", which NASA referred to, were not caused by fuel in the progress capsule.
The reaction of the cosmonauts
After the Russian cosmonauts found the smell, they closed the hatch, which was the 4.9 meter long and 2.6 meter width Poisk module connects to the rest of the space station. The flight controllers on earth then activated "air purification equipment as part of normal processes", which indicates that the smell was probably caused by the extracts of materials in the progress spaceship. The cosmonauts reported that the smell disappeared quickly and that the Cargo Transfer operations were continued as planned.
continuation of the delivery to the ISS
The progress spaceship, one in a long series of supply missions that visited both the Russian and NASA-controlled parts of the ISS, arrived on the ISS on November 21 after it started from the Baikonur space airport in Kazakhstan. It brought "almost three tons of food, fuel and supplies" to the ISS, says NASA.
Although the unexpected smell and the temporary foreclosure of the Poisk hatch were probably a short and isolated event, it is found in the years of saga around a separate, Russian-controlled module on the ISS called zvezda , which was mainly closed because of a slow air leaf. Cosmonauts only enter the module to unload the freight of visitor ships.
The future of the ISS
The international space station has housed, separated, separated, but connected to each other in the Russian and US sections since 2000. NASA hopes to continue to operate the ISS with its five partner authorities by at least 2030. In addition to Roscosmos, these partners include the Canadian Space Authority, the European Space Organization and the Japanese Authority for Space Research.
However,Russian officials have made no commitments to participate at the space station beyond 2028 and will probably not give specific answers to Roscosmos' commitment until 2025 during this period, according to a current report by the NASA office of the Inspector General.
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