The Russian “Zvezda” unit on the International Space Station “ISS” issued an urgent alert, after receiving a report from the crew members about the rise of smoke and the smell of burning plastic, according to the media.
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“The cause of the smoke is still unknown,” the British newspaper “Express” reported on Thursday, citing crew talks with the US space agency “NASA”.
To address the problem, the crew aboard the Russian unit in the space station operated a safety mechanism that removes harmful substances from the station’s atmosphere, according to the same source.
And last night, cosmonaut Oleg Novitsky told the mission control center that “the alarm went off when crew members reported smoke in the Zvezda unit,” according to the same newspaper.
The devices discovered harmful substances in the medical cabinet in the Russian “Zvezda” unit, according to what was reported by the “Russia Today” website.
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According to astronaut Thomas Pesci, the smell of burning plastic has already reached the American part of the International Space Station through ventilation, according to “Express”.
Later, the press office of the Russian space agency “Roscosmos” confirmed in a statement that “the situation is under control, and all systems are operating as usual,” according to the local “TASS” agency.
“At 04:55 Moscow time in the Zvezda service unit of the Russian part of the International Space Station,” Roscosmos (government) said.
During the automatic recharging of the batteries, an alarm was set off by a smoke detector.
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The Russian part of the International Space Station has seen other problems in recent years.
Including air leaks from cracks, it raised concerns about the safety of crews aboard the station.
