The drama behind ISS thrown off course isn’t over yet. After a state-owned Russian news agency accused NASA astronaut Serena Auñón-Chancellor of mentally breaking down aboard the ISS and causing damage to the Russian space module, NASA has come in defense of the astronaut, reports Ars Technica.
“NASA astronauts, including Serena Aunon-Chancellor, are extremely well-respected, serve their country and make invaluable contributions to the agency,” tweeted Kathy Leuders, the associate administrator of NASA’s Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate. “We stand behind Serena and her professional conduct. We do not believe there is any credibility to these accusations.”
Blame game from Russia?
NASA chief Bill Nelson also added, “I whole heartedly agree with Kathy’s statement. I fully support Serena and I will always stand behind our astronauts.”
The whole drama started when the state-owned news service TASS claimed that Auñón-Chancellor experienced “an acute psychological crisis.” The news outlet went on to say that this made her drill holes into the wall of the module to allow her to come back to earth soon.
Not only does TASS provide any evidence to back its accusations, but their claims come from an alleged anonymous source at the Russian space agency. It could be a way of deflecting blame from the actual reason – the Nauka module ran into a software glitch.
Nauka sends ISS into tailspin
Just three hours after docking, Nauka sent the ISS off course when it suddenly fired up its thrusters. The module is said to have received the command to “withdraw,” sending the space station rotating away from its usual orientation. Roscosmos has assured that everything was fine and has worked out well.
The Nauka module has replaced the two-decade-old Pirs module aboard the ISS. It is accompanied by the European Robotic Arm that will work with a new Russian airlock to transfer small payloads from inside to the exterior of the ISS.
Russian officials say they will be investigating any possible damage to ensure everything is in good shape. Details are yet to come out but the promise of investigation hints that the incident is still making waves down on Earth.
