The Russian space program faces ongoing challenges
Zak reported that the cosmonauts aboard the Russian part of the station had donned protective equipment and activated an additional air-washing system aboard their side of the facility. On the American side of the station, NASA astronaut Don Pettit said he smelled something that sounded like “spray paint.”
As of Sunday afternoon, NASA said there were no concerns for the crew and that astronauts were working to open the hatch between the Poisk module and the Progress spacecraft. Poisk, attached to the space station in 2009, is a small element that connects to one of four docking ports on the Russian part of the station.
It was not immediately clear what caused the foul odor coming from the Progress vehicle, but previous Russian vehicles have had leaks while in space. Most recently, in February 2023, a Progress vehicle attached to the station lost pressure in its cooling system.
Facing financial and personnel pressures from Russia's ongoing war against Ukraine, Russia's main space company, Roscosmos, has faced a series of technical problems as it tries to fly people and supplies to the International Space Station in recent years.
