Glitch prevents astronauts' return to Earth

William Atkins
Friday, 24 September 2010 22:22

Science - Space

The normally reliable Russian Soyuz spacecraft had troubles on Thursday, September 23, 2010, when three members of the International Space Station tried to undock for a trip back to Earth.

 

 

ISS commander and Russian cosmonaut Alexander Skvortsov, ISS flight engineer and Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko and ISS flight engineer and U.S. astronaut Tracy Caldwell-Dyson are spending some more time onboard the orbiting science laboratory due to this problem.

Flight controllers at the Russian mission control center have been performing troubleshooting measures to find the problem and solve it.

The problem seems to reside partially in hooks and latches within the docking interface that are suppose to release when commanded to do so by mission controllers.

In addition, hermetic seals seem not to be sealing properly within the undocking sequence. A computer indicates that the seals were not properly in place even though an inspection indicates they are fine.

However, according to a CBC Space News report, ISS flight engineer Fyodor Yurchikhin observed a small 'gear' floating from the docking-system mechanism when he removed a cover in order to inspect the device.

Yurchikhin states, "Right under the cover, I could see... there is a small thing, it looked like a gear. It was under the cover of the panel so I could actually see it for a second. I am trying to reach under it, but the docking mechanism is in the way."

He adds, "But there was some small object that was floating there. That I can confirm. ... It's very small, it was looking very much like a spiral, like a gear with teeth." [CBC News]

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