In Russia

The recent Progress 82 coolant leak was caused by an “external impact” and not some kind of manufacturing defect, Roscosmos is now claiming. At the same time, the Russian space agency is still having to deal with the fallout from the Soyuz MS-22 coolant leak in December, with plans to launch the replacement vehicle on Thursday. Two Russian cosmonauts and a NASA astronaut who were originally slated to return to Earth next month will have to wait until later this year to ride aboard the Souyz MS-23, which will remain…

A view of the Soyuz MS-22 spacecraft docked to the Russian Rassvet module. Photo: NASARoscosmos says it needs more time to evaluate the flight worthiness of its damaged Soyuz MS-22 spacecraft, leaving the safety of three ISS crew members in doubt.According to a Roscosmos statement, investigators “will make organizational decisions about future actions of ground specialists and the crew of the ISS Russian segment, as well as on possible changes in the station’s flight program in January 2023 ” as reported by state-run TASS…

The Soyuz MS-22 spacecraft docked to the Russian Rassvet ISS module, in a photo taken on October 8, 2022.Photo: NASAAn inspection has revealed an 0.8-millimeter-wide hole in the Soyuz MS-22 spacecraft that sprung a coolant leak outside the International Space Station last week. Russian space agency Roscosmos will make a decision on the flight-worthiness of the spacecraft later this month, at which time Russia may choose to expedite the launch of a replacement capsule. The hole is located on the ship’s instrumentation…

The Soyuz rocket took off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.Photo: NASA/Bill IngallsA new crew has successfully reached the International Space Station following the successful launch and docking of the Soyuz MS-22 spacecraft. The Expedition 68 crew will spend the next six months in low Earth orbit running science experiments and maintaining the orbital outpost, despite political tensions on the ground.NASA astronaut Frank Rubio, along with Roscosmos astronauts Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin, flewaboard…

The Soyuz rocket awaits launch at the Baikonur Cosmodrome launch pad in Kazakhstan.Photo: NASA/Bill IngallsThe International Space Station is gearing up to host a new crew. NASA astronaut Frank Rubio, along with Roscosmos astronauts Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin,are launching on board a Soyuz MS-22 crew ship on Wednesday to spend six months on the orbiting space station. You can catch the action live right here. The Soyuz rocket is scheduled to blast off at 9:54 a.m. ET on Wednesday from the Baikonur Cosmodrome…

Photo: Natalia Kolesnikova (Getty Images)The Russian government has added a new target to its geopolitical shit list: expat social media influencers.As first reported by Bloomberg Monday, Russian-born social media influencers living outside the country are reportedly being targeted by government officials for discussing or posting about the Russian invasion of Ukraine, something the government insists isn’t actually really a war at all. The expats claim those officials are trying to censor their speech by threatening to…