---
title: "Oxygen Supply Fails on Leaking Segment of International Space Station"
description: "The oxygen supply system providing the Russian segment on board the International Space Station with air has failed, Agence France-Presse reports."
date: "2020-10-15"
modified: "2020-10-15"
authors:
  - name: "Victor Tangermann"
    job_title: "Senior Editor"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor"
url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/oxygen-supply-fails-international-space-station"
categories:
  - "International Space Station"
  - "NASA"
  - "Space"
tags:
  - "international space station"
  - "iss"
  - "the digest"
---

# Oxygen Supply Fails on Leaking Segment of International Space Station

![The oxygen supply system providing the Russian segment on board the International Space Station with air has failed, Agence France-Presse reports.](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/oxygen-supply-system-fails-international-space-station.jpg>)
*\<em\>Image: NASA\</em\>*

## System Failure

The oxygen supply system providing the Russian segment on board the International Space Station with air has failed, [*Agence France-Presse* reports](<https://phys.org/news/2020-10-oxygen-russian-segment-iss-crew.html>) — the same Zvezda module that's [slowly leaking air into space](<https://www.businessinsider.com/nasa-roscosmos-found-leak-on-international-space-station-2020-9>).

Russian space corporation Roscosmos maintains that the crew is still in no danger. Repairs have reportedly already started.

"Nothing threatens the security of the crew and the ISS," a Roscosmos spokesperson told *AFP*.

The system failed on Wednesday shortly after [three new crew members](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/russia-launches-final-soyuz-nasa-astronauts>), two Russian and one American, reached the station bringing the total crew up to six — but luckily, the oxygen supply system in the American section is still operating normally.

## The Leak

The news comes [after a leak was spotted](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/nasa-leak-space-station>) on board the station. Crew members later identified that the leak was [located in the Russian module](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/nasa-almost-found-leak-international-space-station>) where the oxygen system has now failed.

It's not clear whether the two incidents are related.

The cause for the failing oxygen supply system may have been old age, according to retired cosmonaut Gennady Padalka, who [spoke with Russian state media](<https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2020/10/15/oxygen-supply-fails-on-russian-segment-of-iss-crew-not-in-danger-a71763>). The system was installed over two decades ago in 1998.

**READ MORE:** [Oxygen supply fails on Russian segment of ISS, crew not in danger](<https://phys.org/news/2020-10-oxygen-russian-segment-iss-crew.html>) \[*AFP*\]

**More on the leak:** *[NASA Says It's Almost Found the Leak on the International Space Station](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/nasa-almost-found-leak-international-space-station>)*

## Author
I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida.

### Author social links  
[Bluesky](<https://bsky.app/profile/vtanger.bsky.social>)