“Roscosmos faces problems on the ISS again: astronauts detect toxic odor

Russian cosmonauts encountered a toxic odor during a mission to transport three tons of food, fuel and supplies to the International Space Station. After opening the hatch of the Progress MS-29 spacecraft on November 23, they noticed an unpleasant odor and droplets, forcing the crew to close the hatch of the Search module, which separated it from the rest of the space station.

This is reported by Ars Technica.

NASA reportedthat pollution sensors had analyzed the air quality at the station. By Sunday, controllers reported that the air quality was normal. However, according to Anatoly Zak, who writes about space on the Russian Space Web site, the smell was toxic and the astronauts had to put on protective equipment and activate an additional air purification system.In the American segment of the ISS, a NASA astronaut smelled a smell similar to spray paint.

On Sunday, NASA said that there are no concerns about the safety of the crew and that work is continuing to open the hatch between the Search module and the Progress MS-29 spacecraft. It should be noted that the Search module has been connected to the Russian Zvezda module since 2009.

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It is a small structure used for spacecraft docking and spacewalks on the Russian segment of the ISS. Although the cause of the unpleasant odor has not yet been determined, Russian spacecraft have previously experienced fluid leaks from the ship's cooling system, which could happen this time. The last incident occurred in February 2023.

Due to financial and personnel difficulties caused by Russia's war against Ukraine, Roscosmos is facing numerous technical problems. How the war affects Roscosmos:

• Economic sanctions limit the budget for the space program, which leads to a reduction in resources to support and develop new projects.
• Russians face restrictions on cooperation with international space agencies. This reduces opportunities to share necessary technologies.
• As a result of the political situation and the mobilization of personnel, Russia has problems retaining highly qualified specialists in the space industry. This also affects the effectiveness of its programs.