ISS crew shelters in spacecraft amid leak repair; NASA directs safety protocols

Astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) briefly took shelter in their docked SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft today as Russian cosmonauts initiated repairs on a worsening air leak within the station's Russian segment. This precautionary measure was enacted after the leak rate increased, prompting NASA to direct five of the seven crew members to a "safe haven" while the repair attempt was underway.

The identified leak is located in the Zvezda service module's transfer tunnel, known as PrK, an issue that has been monitored since 2019. While one of two detected leaks was reportedly sealed, the structural repair efforts were paused by Roscosmos, Russia's space agency, to allow for further assessment of measurements and data.

Following this pause, NASA instructed the astronauts to conclude their safe haven procedures and resume normal operations aboard the orbiting laboratory. Both NASA and Roscosmos continue to work collaboratively to find a long-term solution for the persistent air leaks.