Astronauts Return to ISS After Shelter Order Due to Worsening Air Leak
WASHINGTON — June 5, 2026 — NASA ordered five astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) to take emergency shelter in a docked SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft on Friday, June 5, as Russian cosmonauts attempted to repair a worsening air leak in the Russian segment of the orbiting laboratory.
The precautionary measure was lifted after approximately two hours, and all crew members have since returned to their normal duties, NASA officials confirmed.
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Leak in Russian ‘PrK’ Transfer Tunnel
The air leak originates in the transfer tunnel, designated PrK, which connects the Zvezda service module to a docking port on the Russian segment of the ISS . The problem is not new—microscopic structural cracks in the tunnel’s walls have been slowly releasing air since they were first detected in September 2019 .
“The cracks have always been a concern that NASA watches very closely,” NASA spokeswoman Bethany Stevens said in a statement posted on X. “NASA and Roscosmos have been working to determine the root cause of the cracks” .
The leak rate has fluctuated over time, reaching approximately 1 to 2 pounds of air loss per day in recent days, according to officials . Following the arrival of a Russian cargo ship last month, Roscosmos personnel detected a new pressure drop, prompting the decision to move beyond temporary patchwork fixes and attempt a more extensive repair operation .
Crew Takes Shelter ‘Out of Abundance of Caution’
The five astronauts ordered to seek shelter included all four members of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-12 mission—NASA astronauts Jessica Meir and Jack Hathaway, European Space Agency astronaut Sophie Adenot, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev—along with NASA astronaut Chris Williams, who had arrived at the station aboard a Russian Soyuz spacecraft .
The crew entered the same SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule that carried the Crew-12 group to the station in February. The Dragon spacecraft, approximately 4 meters (13 feet) wide, can function as a “lifeboat”—attached to the station but ready to detach and return to Earth at short notice .
NASA described the decision as being made “out of an abundance of caution” while repairs were underway .
Repairs Paused, Shelter Order Lifted
Russian cosmonauts Sergey Kud-Sverchkov and Sergei Mikaev remained in the Russian segment to carry out the repair work . According to Russian news agency Interfax, two leaks were identified; one was quickly sealed, while work on the second continued .
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Roscosmos subsequently “paused Friday’s structural repair efforts as more measurements and data is assessed,” Stevens said . With the immediate threat reduced, NASA instructed the crew to end safe haven procedures and return to planned operations aboard the station.
Leak Has Troubled Station for Years
The PrK tunnel leak has been described by NASA’s science correspondent as “one of the most persistent and troubling problems in the station’s history” . Despite years of attempts, engineers have never fully solved the issue.
In 2024, the situation reached a point where NASA classified it as the station’s highest-level safety risk . Earlier this year, engineers thought they had made progress after applying sealants, but doubts about whether the leak had truly been sealed proved well-founded when sensors detected a fresh pressure drop on May 1 .
The current repair efforts remain ongoing, and it is not yet clear when they will resume . No crew members have been in danger at any time, and the ISS continues to operate normally.
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