International Space Station emergency – live: Nasa astronauts prepare to evacuate ISS over air leaks – UK Times

Here’s the full statement from Nasa spokesperson Bethany Stevens, which was posted on X, formerly known as Twitter. She says that the cracks in the space station have “always been a concern” and that the Russian space agency is launching a “more extensive repair operation”.

“The Zvezda service module transfer tunnel, known as PrK, has suffered from cracks and leaks for some time, and has been mitigated by Roscosmos as much as possible to date. The cracks have always been a concern that NASA watches very closely,” she wrote. “NASA and Roscosmos have been working to determine the root cause of the cracks, and Roscosmos manages the issue through operational mitigation measures and periodic partial-repair efforts. Following new leaks, Roscosmos has elected to proceed with a more extensive repair operation on Friday, June 5.

“Out of an abundance of caution, NASA has directed all four of the agency’s SpaceX Crew-12 members and NASA astronaut Chris Williams to assume an elevated safety posture in the Dragon spacecraft while the repair is underway. We continue to work with our Russian counterparts, along with the rest of the international community that supports the space station, to arrive at a more permanent resolution.”