ISS LOSING OXYGEN: NASA warns International Space Station of pressure leak from breach

ISS PRESSURE LEAK: NASA warned the space station of a breach in the orbital laboratory (Image: NASA JOHNSON)

NASA has warned astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) of a drop in air pressure after a breach was detected in the orbital laboratory.

Barrelling around the planet at 17,150mph (7.66 km per second), the ISS hangs 253.5 miles (408km) above Earth.

On Wednesday August 29, at around 7pm East Coast time (midnight UK time), ISS flight controllers were alerted to a pressure leak in the space station.

Both and the European Space Agency (ESA) have confirmed the safety of the six crew members living on the space station.

The six astronauts were alerted to the breach on Thursday morning and repair procedures are now in effect.


NASA described the breach as “minute” and not dangerous enough to wake the astronauts from their sleep.

The ESA stressed the astronauts from the USA, Germany and Russia were in “no danger and were allowed to sleep as normal”.

NASA said in a statement: “About 7pm EDT Wednesday, International Station flight controllers in Houston and Moscow began seeing signs of a minute pressure leak in the complex.


ISS PRESSURE LEAK: The ISS crew members located a brach in the Russian ISS module (Image: NASA JOHNSON)


A joint crew effort led the astronauts to discover a small breach in a Russian segment of the ISS.

NASA and the ESA estimate the astronauts still have weeks of air left in the ISS’ reserves.

A cause for the breach was not given but this is not the first time the ISS has suffered a leak.

In 2007 a small leak broke out in the US Harmony module.

ISS PRESSURE LEAK: The orbital lab is manned by a crew of six astronauts (Image: NASA JOHNSON)

NASA’s Robotic External Leak Locator (RELL) successfully located a small leak of ammonia from the space station’s coolant loop in September 2017.


The astronauts from ISS Expedition 55/56 and 56/57 are expected to return to Earth in October and December respectively.

The ISS is continuously manned by crews of astronauts on a rotation basis.

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