ISS evacuation? Astronauts briefly shelter as leak worsens

ISS evacuation? Astronauts briefly shelter as leak worsens

At 13:04 UTC today (June 5, 2026), NASA ordered astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) to put on their spacesuits, take shelter and prepare for evacuation. The instruction came as Russian crewmembers attempted to repair a worsening air leak on their side of the station.

Less than two hours later, Mission Control said the sheltering astronauts – two U.S. astronauts, a French astronaut and a Russian cosmonaut – could exit the “safe haven” of their Crew Dragon spacecraft. This is because the repair attempt had been paused to allow new measurements to be assessed, NASA said.

The leak is in a transfer tunnel module on the Russian side of the ISS, known as PrK. It’s been a known issue since 2019, and NASA and Russia’s space agency Roscosmos have long been debating the cause and potential fixes. NASA officials reportedly said in a late-2024 meeting that the leak could lead to “a catastrophic failure.”

ISS leak worsened this week

NASA spokesperson Bethany Stevens wrote on X today that:

The cracks have always been a concern that NASA watches very closely.

And a senior NASA official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told Reuters that the leaks worsened on Monday, escalating from a pound (.45 kg) of air per day to two pounds (.9 kg).

That’s what drove this repair attempt, and the evacuation precautions. Stevens continued:

Following new leaks, Roscosmos has elected to proceed with a more extensive repair operation on Friday, June 5. Out of an abundance of caution, NASA has directed all four of the agency’s SpaceX Crew-12 members and NASA astronaut Chris Williams to assume an elevated safety posture in the Dragon spacecraft while the repair is underway.

But within a few hours, the repair attempt had been paused. Stevens explained in a follow-up post:

Roscosmos has paused Friday’s structural repair efforts inside the Zvezda service module transfer tunnel, known as PrK, as more measurements and data is assessed. Given this development, NASA has instructed the crew members inside the Dragon spacecraft to end the safe haven procedures and return to planned operations aboard the International Space Station. We look forward to working with Roscosmos on a collaborative approach to address the leaks.

Bottom line: NASA told astronauts aboard the International Space Station to shelter and prepare for a evacuation today, as Russian crewmembers attempted to fix a worsening leak. Later the order was rescinded.

Read more: Could the space station leak lead to ‘catastrophic failure’?

Science news, night sky events and beautiful photos, all in one place. Click here to subscribe to our free daily newsletter.