Soyuz manned capsule docked to ISS is apparently leaking something

[Elderberry]

Behind the Black 12/14/2022

https://behindtheblack.com/behind-the-black/points-of-information/soyuz-manned-capsule-docked-to-iss-is-apparently-leaking-something/

A spacewalk today was cancelled when it was suddenly noticed that some unknown substance was leaking from one of the Soyuz manned capsules docked to ISS.

    During preparations for this evening’s planned spacewalk by Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin, ground teams noticed significant leaking of an unknown substance from the aft portion of the Soyuz MS-22 spacecraft docked to the Rassvet module on the International Space Station. The spacewalk has been canceled, and ground teams in Moscow are evaluating the nature of the fluid and potential impacts to the integrity of the Soyuz spacecraft, which carried Prokopyev, Petelin, and NASA astronaut Frank Rubio into space after launching from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Sept. 21.

The big question is whether this leak will impact the capsule’s function as a lifeboat or a return vehicle for the three astronauts it brought into space. If not, then an empty manned capsule needs to be launched, either by the Russians or SpaceX, though if the latter someone would have to pay the cost.

[Elderberry]

Russian engineers assessing leak from Soyuz crew spacecraft

https://spaceflightnow.com/2022/12/15/spacewalk-canceled-after-coolant-leak-from-russian-soyuz-spacecraft/

https://twitter.com/i/status/1603236873878573056

A Russian Soyuz crew ferry ship docked to the International Space Station spewed particles of an unknown substance, presumably coolant fluid, into space Wednesday night, forcing two Russian cosmonauts to call off a planned spacewalk as engineers on the ground scrambled to determine the source and the effects of the leak.

Mission controllers first observed the leak around 7:45 p.m. EST Wednesday (0045 GMT Thursday), according to Rob Navias, a NASA spokesperson providing commentary on NASA TV. The leak occurred as Russian cosmonauts Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin prepared for a spacewalk to help relocate a radiator from outside of the Russian Rassvet module to the Nauka science module on the space station.

But before the cosmonauts could head outside, Russian ground controllers near Moscow noticed “significant leaking of an unknown substance from the aft portion of the Soyuz MS-22 spacecraft docked to the Rassvet module on the International Space Station,” NASA said in a brief statement Wednesday night.

Navias said Russian ground teams noticed a warning tone indicating a drop in pressure in an external cooling loop on the Soyuz spacecraft when the spray of snow-like particles were first observed streaming away from the capsule.

There are two manifolds in the Soyuz spacecraft’s single cooling loop, Navias said. It wasn’t immediately clear what impact the apparent coolant leak might have on the performance of the Soyuz spacecraft, which launched Sept. 21 from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan with Prokopyev, Petelin, and NASA astronaut Frank Rubio.

More at link.

[andy58-in-nh]

Vodka.

[GtHawk]

Vodka.

Or borscht, no the borscht is probably in the other loop. Damn if it's the vodka loop than it is most definitely catastrophic.

[Elderberry]

Roscosmos to Decide Next Week if Soyuz MS-22 is Safe Enough

SPACEPOLICYONLINE.COM By Marcia Smith December 19, 2022

https://spacepolicyonline.com/news/roscosmos-to-decide-next-week-if-soyuz-ms-22-is-safe-enough/

The head of Russia’s space agency said today a decision will be made next week on what to do about the damaged Soyuz MS-22 spacecraft docked at the International Space Station. Soyuz MS-22 is the ride home for two Russian cosmonauts and an American astronaut as well as their lifeboat while they’re onboard. Last week all the coolant leaked out of an exterior cooling loop due to a tiny hole that could have been caused by a micrometeoroid or space debris.

Yuri Borisov, Director General of Russia’s state space corporation Roscosmos, said two working groups are looking at options and a decision will be made by December 27 on the path forward. He stressed there is “no hurry.”

At 7:45 pm Eastern Standard Time on Wednesday, December 14 (00:45 UTC Thursday, December 15), just as cosmonauts Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin were about to exit an airlock to begin a spacewalk, a shower of particles began spewing from the Soyuz spacecraft docked outside. It intensified as time passed. The spacewalk was cancelled.

More at link.

[Smokin Joe]

Float valve stuck on the  toilet again?

[Elderberry]

Rescue Soyuz spacecraft can't reach International Space Station until February

https://www.space.com/international-space-station-rescue-soyuz-february

Russia and NASA are still evaluating whether a leaky Soyuz spacecraft is safe to return three International Space Station crew members home.

It will be a while before backup comes for a space station crew currently depending on a leaky Soyuz to get home.

Should the Soyuz MS-22 spacecraft be deemed unsafe after spouting coolant into space Dec. 14, two cosmonauts and a NASA astronaut will need to wait until February for a backup Soyuz to arrive at the International Space Station (ISS), a Russian space official said during a press conference Thursday (Dec. 22).

The cause of the hole that caused the leak is still under investigation, but one idea has been ruled out: it was not part of the ongoing Geminid meteor shower, as the trajectory was in the wrong direction, Joel Montalbano, NASA's ISS program manager, said during the same briefing.

More at link.