NASA ordered five astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) to shelter and prepare for possible evacuation on Friday due to a worsening air leak in the Russian Zvezda service module. The order was reversed roughly two hours later after Roscosmos paused repair efforts.
Key Takeaways
NASA ordered five astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) to shelter and prepare for possible evacuation due to a worsening air leak in the Russian Zvezda service module. The order was later reversed after two hours as Roscosmos paused repair efforts.
- NASA issued an evacuation alert for ISS astronauts due to an air leak
- Five astronauts, including four from NASA’s Crew-12 mission and one U.S. astronaut, took shelter in the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft
- The order was reversed after two hours as Roscosmos paused repair efforts
- Roscosmos detected two leaks but stated there was no immediate threat to the crew
- ISS has never had to evacuate in its 27-year history
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▼Source Claims Check
High ConsensusAll 6 publishers report consistent facts across 3 key claims.
| Claim | Status | Reason | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Air Leak Escalation | Broad Agreement | Air leak rate increased from one pound to two pounds per day. | |
| Astronauts Involved In Evacuation Alert | Broad Agreement | Five astronauts, including four from NASA’s Crew-12 mission and one U.S. astronaut, took shelter in… | |
| Evacuation Order Reversal | Broad Agreement | NASA reversed evacuation order after two hours as Roscosmos paused repair efforts. |
Air Leak Escalation
Broad AgreementAir leak rate increased from one pound to two pounds per day.
Astronauts Involved In Evacuation Alert
Broad AgreementFive astronauts, including four from NASA’s Crew-12 mission and one U.S. astronaut, took shelter in the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft.
Evacuation Order Reversal
Broad AgreementNASA reversed evacuation order after two hours as Roscosmos paused repair efforts.
This analysis is AI-generated and may not perfectly represent each source's reporting. Always read the original articles for full context.
The four astronauts of NASA’s Crew-12 mission—Jessica Meir, Jack Hathaway, European Space Agency astronaut Sophie Adenot, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev—along with U.S. astronaut Christopher Williams took shelter in the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft. The order was issued at 9:04 a.m. ET (1304 GMT) as a precautionary measure.
According to NASA spokesperson Bethany Stevens, the astronauts were instructed to don their spacesuits in case the air leak worsened and an emergency evacuation became necessary. Roscosmos detected two leaks aboard the ISS but stated that there was no immediate threat to the crew. The first leak was quickly sealed, and preparations were underway to seal the second one.
The air leaks have been relatively minor in recent months but escalated on Friday from a pound of air per day to two pounds, according to a senior NASA official who asked not to be named. Roscosmos said its experts had detected two leaks aboard the ISS but that there was no immediate threat to the crew.
NASA and Russia’s space agency Roscosmos have debated for months over the cause and potential fixes of small air leaks aboard Russia’s Zvezda service module, a key structure of the ISS. The station is currently home to seven astronauts from two missions, including the Crew-12 team.
How this summary was created
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