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ISS air-leak crisis worsens as Zvezda cracks elevate habitability risk; Expedition 74 schedules robotics-repair EVA under growin

A Russian-built Zvezda service module has been leaking air through hairline cracks since 2019, with NASA auditors now rating it the ISS’s highest open safety risk. Expedition 74 is also preparing an upcoming spacewalk to repair a robotic arm, with advisers flagging longer-term health concerns as crewwork continues.

Discovered 2026-06-26T04:41:36.770874-07:00 | 2026-06-26T04:41:36.770874-07:00

Briefing

What Hype is tracking

This cluster ties the station’s immediate EVA workload to a quantified habitability risk: NASA auditors rate the Zvezda leak as the ISS’s highest open safety issue, following years of cracks-related atmosphere-loss problems (see prior escalation: ISS leak saga escalates again as NASA orders astronauts to prepare for a hasty departure).
It underscores operational coupling between life-support risk management and on-orbit maintenance: earlier emergency sheltering decisions driven by the leak environment (ISS air-leak prompts NASA to order Dragon shelter as Russian crew works to restore habitability) now converge with the next repair window.
The robotics-repair EVA planning adds schedule and execution complexity to an already strained environment, building on the prior Canadarm2 fault that forced spacewalk timing decisions (ISS Canadarm2 fault forces spacewalk repair planning for Expedition 74).

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NASA astronomy.com SpaceNews.com spacedaily.com