AN AIR leak that has been plaguing the Mir space station now appears to be
under control. But it may yet delay Russia鈥檚 plans to bring home the ageing
station鈥檚 crew.
Mir began losing air pressure about two weeks ago. Its crew, two Russians and
a French man, were asked to seal off sections of the station to isolate the
leak. At a press conference in Moscow earlier this week, officials announced
that the leak had been tracked down to a module used to stage
spacewalks鈥攚hich is now safely sealed from the rest of the station.
Although the astronauts are not in immediate danger, the fate of their
mission remains unclear. A Progress supply ship was scheduled for launch from
the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan this week. Its cargo includes supples and
a new guidance system to keep Mir under control after the astronauts鈥� planned
departure at the end of August.
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But as 快猫短视频 went to press, Baikonur was still closed
following a failed rocket launch
(see 鈥淥ut to launch鈥�). The guidance system will take a
month to install and test. So if Russian officials can鈥檛 convince the Kazakh
authorities to reopen the launch site quickly, the astronauts may be forced to
extend their stay.