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ISS Plagued By Leak - Again!
The International Space Station is showing its age - with a variable leak of precious air.
Problem conceived of (and solved?) by science fiction:
— Bill Christensen (@Technovelgy) May 21, 2026
The tagalong balloons from "Gentlemen, Be Seated" (9148) by Robert Heinlein.
There were perhaps a dozen bladder-like objects in the tunnel, the size and shape of toy balloons... they floated without displaying much tendency…
Unfortunately, the leak returned three weeks ago. After a couple of sources reported this to Ars, NASA confirmed the issue on Thursday. On May 1, after Russian cosmonauts unloaded cargo from the Progress 95 cargo spacecraft, Roscosmos noted a “slow pressure drop” in the PrK module.“Teams performed data analysis, which indicated a loss of about one pound per day,” NASA spokesperson Josh Finch told Ars. “Roscosmos allowed the pressure in the transfer tunnel to gradually decrease while monitoring the rate. The area now is being maintained at a lower pressure, with small repressurizations as needed. There are no impacts to station operations, and NASA and Roscosmos are coordinating on next steps.”
Although there is no impact on astronauts aboard the station, nor any immediate concerns about the station’s health, the returning leak issue raises new questions about the long-term viability of the ISS.
I've written about this problem on past occasions - see below - and can't help but invoke the tag-along balloons from Robert Heinlein's 1948 classic Gentlement, Be Seated.
See also Ultrasonic Noise Betrays ISS Leaks (2013) and International Space Station Leak Plugged - With Finger (2018).
Update 21-May-2026: X user LarryPfeffer correctly points out the following:
NASA has flying camera-bots for the space station. NASA needs such a robot, capable of EVA, fitted with an oxygen sniffer!Heinlein's balloons would work only if their was so little airflow inside, that the airflow toward the leak would overpower ambient airflow. Not so on ISS.
End update.
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