HOUSTON — NASA directed five astronauts aboard the International Space Station to shelter inside a docked SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft on Friday while Russian cosmonauts worked to repair air leaks in a Russian module, NASA officials said.
The precaution was taken out of an abundance of caution as repairs were underway on persistent leaks in the Zvezda service module, according to NASA spokesperson Bethany Stevens.
The four members of NASA’s Crew-12 mission — astronauts Jessica Meir, Jack Hathaway, Sophie Adenot of the European Space Agency, and cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev — along with NASA astronaut Chris Williams, entered the Crew Dragon Freedom spacecraft docked to the station’s Harmony module around 9:04 a.m. ET, Stevens said. They donned spacesuits as a further safety measure.
Roscosmos cosmonauts were addressing cracks in the PrK transfer tunnel of the Zvezda module, where air leaks have been an ongoing issue since 2019. The leak rate had reportedly doubled on Friday, prompting the temporary safe-haven procedure, officials said.
The astronauts remained in the Dragon for roughly two hours before NASA lifted the order. Stevens later stated: “Given this development, NASA has instructed the crew members inside the Dragon spacecraft to end the safe haven procedures and return to planned operations aboard the International Space Station.”
The International Space Station, a joint project involving NASA, Roscosmos and other space agencies, has faced recurring minor air leaks in its aging Russian segment. Crews routinely monitor and seal such issues to maintain cabin pressure.
No immediate threat to the crew or the station’s overall integrity was reported. Russian officials indicated they had sealed one leak site and were assessing the second. Station pressure remained stable, NASA said.
The incident highlights maintenance challenges for the ISS, which is approved to operate until 2030. Both NASA and Roscosmos have emphasized continued close coordination on station safety matters.
As of Friday evening, the crew had resumed normal operations. Further details on the long-term repair plans remained under discussion between the partner agencies.
