Skip to main content

Space Station hole may have been made by ‘someone with a drill’

A recent safety alert aboard the International Space Station (ISS) led to the discovery of a small hole in the shell of a Russian Soyuz spacecraft, which has been docked at the ISS since arriving with three astronauts in June.

The hole was originally thought to have been caused by a collision with a tiny meteorite fragment, but the head of Russia’s Roscosmos space agency has now suggested that it could have been the result of an altogether more sinister act.

Recommended Videos

‘Deliberate spoilage’

In a dramatic turn of events, Roscosmos head Dmitry Rogozin said this week that the meteorite theory had to be rejected as “the spaceship’s hull was evidently impacted from inside.” He even went so far as to suggest that it could have been the result of “deliberate spoilage.”

In comments reported by Russian news agency TASS, Rogozin said the investigating team was “considering all theories,” but suggested the hole “seems to [have been] done by a faltering hand,” noting that “there are traces of a drill sliding across the surface.”

The Roscosmos chief said it was now “essential” to discover if the puncture occurred in space or back on Earth, and to find the person responsible.

“We will find out without fail,” Rogozin promised.

NASA insisted that the six-person crew was never in any danger when the hole was discovered last week, but with a drop in cabin pressure detected, it was vital to apply a patch as quickly as possible. And, using thermo-resistant tape as a temporary fix, that’s exactly what the crew did.

Missing home?

Turning the “sabotage theory” dial all the way up to 11, Russian lawmaker and former cosmonaut Maxim Surayev suggested that a homesick astronaut aboard the ISS could have made the hole deliberately in a bid to return to Earth sooner.

“We’re all human and anyone might want to go home, but this method is really low,” Surayev said in comments reported by the Guardian.

“If a cosmonaut pulled this strange stunt — and that can’t be ruled out — it’s really bad.”

He added that he hoped the cause was “a production defect” rather than sabotage, but said that too would be “very sad” as “there’s been nothing like this in the history of Soyuz ships.”

The Guardian’s report points out that the hole is in a part of the Soyuz spacecraft that’s discarded in orbit, and therefore is not used as part of the main vehicle that transports astronauts all the way back to Earth.

It would indeed be extraordinary if the hole was discovered to have been made deliberately, but investigators will also look at the possibility of the damage occurring during testing of the spacecraft back on terra firma, with an engineer perhaps trying to cover a piece of clumsy handiwork with sealant that later fell off after docking with the space station.

Trevor Mogg
Contributing Editor
Not so many moons ago, Trevor moved from one tea-loving island nation that drives on the left (Britain) to another (Japan)…
Watch SpaceX’s Crew Dragon thrusters guide it to space station
A SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft docked at the space station.

SpaceX has shared a cool video showing the Crew Dragon’s Draco engines nudging the spacecraft toward the International Space Station (ISS).

The autonomous maneuver took place on Wednesday, April 27 and marked the arrival of SpaceX’s Crew-4 astronauts at the orbital outpost following a 16-hour voyage from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Read more
Watch SpaceX’s Crew-4 astronauts arrive at new home in space
SpaceX Crew-4 arriving at the space station in April 2022.

SpaceX’s Crew-4 astronauts have safely boarded the International Space Station (ISS) after a 16-hour ride to the orbiting laboratory -- the fastest Crew Dragon trip to the facility yet.

NASA astronauts Kjell Lindgren, Bob Hines, and Jessica Watkins, together with Samantha Cristoforetti of the European Space Agency, traveled to the ISS aboard a Crew Dragon spacecraft, docking with the facility 260 miles above Earth at just after 7:35 p.m. ET (4:35 p.m. PT) on Wednesday, April 27.

Read more
SpaceX Crew-4 astronauts are on their way to the space station
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying the Crew-4 astronauts launching from the Kennedy Space Center.

SpaceX’s Crew-4 mission to the International Space Station (ISS) launched from Kennedy’s Launch Complex 39A at just after 3:50 a.m. ET (12:50 a.m. PT) on Wednesday, April 27.

NASA astronauts Kjell Lindgren, Bob Hines, and Jessica Watkins, along with Samantha Cristoforetti of the European Space Agency, are now on their way to the orbiting outpost with docking expected to take place on Wednesday evening. The crew will spend the next six months living and working aboard the station 250 miles above Earth.

Read more