--- title: "NASA Says It’s Totally Fine the Space Station is Absolutely Riddled With Cracks and Leaks" description: "Despite its watchdog warning that leaks on the aging International Space Station are a \"top safety concern,\" NASA doesn't seem too worried." date: "2024-10-10" modified: "2024-10-10" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/nasa-dismisses-space-station-cracks-leaks" categories: - "NASA" - "Space" tags: - "international space station" - "NASA" - "Roscosmos" - "the digest" --- # NASA Says It’s Totally Fine the Space Station is Absolutely Riddled With Cracks and Leaks ![]() *\Image: NASA / Futurism\* ## Inspector Gadget Despite its own watchdog warning that leaks on the [aging International Space Station]() are a "top safety concern," NASA doesn't seem too worried. As the [*Washington Post* reports](), both a spokesperson for the agency and its associate administrator downplayed the severity of the cracks and leaks on the Russian part of the ISS that were paramount to a new [inspector general report](). In that report, the agency watchdog highlighted that there were [significant cracks and air leaks]() in a segment of the tunnel leading to the Russian portion of the space station. Worse yet, they appear to have increased in severity and are leaking more air than ever before. When speaking to *WaPo* about the report, however, NASA associate administrator James Free indicated that the issue has been conveyed to Russian counterparts — without clarifying whether anything was being done about it. "We have conveyed the seriousness of the leaks multiple times," Free told the newspaper, "including when I was in Russia earlier this year." The associate administrator added that NASA has asked Roscosmos "to minimize how long that hatch is open" and that the Russian space agency has complied. "We’ve come to a compromise that they close it in the evening," Free continued. That unconvincing reassurance clearly isn't doing that much for the agency. In July, NASA [quietly awarded]() SpaceX a $266,000 contract to come up with evacuation ideas for American astronauts who hitch rides to the ISS on Russian Soyuz rockets. As the agency told *WaPo*, that contingency planning was triggered "due to the ongoing leak detection work." ## Looking Into It Currently, it's unclear what exactly has caused the leaks on the Russian side of the ISS — but apparently, they're patching them up as they go along. "Roscosmos has applied sealant to many of these areas of interest which has further reduced the leak rate," NASA spokesperson Kathryn Hambleton told *WaPo*. The Russian space agency identified a whopping 50 "areas of concern" and "continues to evaluate the areas of concern and apply sealant and patches as warranted," Hambleton added. She also noted that the problematic areas have not been "confirmed to be cracks" and could simply be "benign imperfections that could be typically seen on a surface, like a small scratch." With the ISS spending [ten years longer in space]() than it was ever supposed to, its continued survival until NASA's hard limit of 2031 will, the agency's inspector general notes, require updated risk assessments and "continued support" from its international partners — and "Russia in particular." **More on ISS problems:** [*The Company Building NASA's Next Space Station Says Things Are Actually Going Great Even Though It's Firing 100 Employees and Can't Pay Its Bills*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've often been drawn to unpacking the narratives that underlie technological, scientific and medical progress, with a special interest in areas of conflict and ambiguity that end up setting agendas and steering the fates of both elites and the hoi polloi. I'm a committed generalist, but I often find myself returning to work involving NASA and the private space sector, the effects of AI on media and society, and the mechanics of the pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on the spread of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Prior to Futurism, I worked for publications ranging from Media Matters and Truthdig to Raw Story and Bustle. I'm also the author of "Myspace Scene Queens," a 2024 title in Instar Books' acclaimed "Remember the Internet" series. My work at Futurism has been cited by outlets including the New Yorker, Slate, Nieman Lab, the Verge, the MIT Technology Review, the Sunday Times, and the Daily Beast. I grew up in North Carolina, attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and now live in Brooklyn, New York. In my free time, I'm an avid reader and music fan; you can probably find me at a local poetry reading, concert, underground rave, or DJ set. I'm the proud parent of an ineffable orange cat named Mee-Mow. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()