NEWS AND VIEWS FROM THE NEFARIUM OCT 3 2019
October 3, 2019 / /
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There's a hole in this story, and it may be a big one:
‘Nasty surprise’: Russia goes silent on mysterious drill hole in International Space Station
Posted in News & Views
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I see your hole card and raise you…
a couple of countdown explosions.
You have a family, yes? Nice kids…
Now all you have to do is make a tiny hole, nobody will get hurt unless…
SPACE BURGER
A Jesuit agent named Wormwood,
in Weishaupt’s brotherhood,
went, as papal mole,
by drilling hole,
looking for space food.
There could be an ‘inside saboteur’, of course. Russia is particularly vulnerable to this due to the privations resulting from the rape of Russia. Technical people are paid way-below what would be Western standards, so corruption/compromise is possible. We will probably never know this aspect.
On the news clamp-down, I suspect this has to do with Russia’s image for its space program. USSR and later Russia used to have bargain-basement launcher/launching costs. As such, they could count-on outside capital from international launches to partially-fund their space program.
I imagine that SpaceX has dumbfounded Russian rocketry. SpaceX’s reusable rockets enable a launch-price way below even Russian prices. So, international launch money is mostly going to go away. Combined with the fear of angering America – due to various sanctions – scaring away other launch purchasers, the Russian space program is facing severe loss of funding.
Consequently, I could easily see the Russians wanting to send the ‘hole’ incident down the memory-drain as soon as possible…
Duct tape was made for ships by the Navy, right? Who were the staff who had access to that craft and that spot on that craft and when. There’s gotta be a decent record on it. That’s a unique craft with a unique list of crew allowed to touch it. They must know who it is.
Just with the pressure differential, how did this not turn into a major thing? Quickly?
A couple things: First, size differential. The hole was only 2mm in diameter, versus a whole, huge space station of air. That was why the ground monitors did not even wake the astronauts/cosmonauts, who were in their sleep cycle when the leakage was noticed. Second, I believe the whole hole (hah!) did not open at once. From what I have read, it was more of a gradual degradation of the sealing material, rather than a pop-out of all of it.
Oh. It was also in the cargo area right? Might that not be such a seal dependent area? Might that be well outside the areas on the craft that they care about keeping an atmosphere?
Yes and no. The cargo area and the ‘return’ area have a pressure door between them. In theory, you could just shut that door and let the cargo area gradually vent to vacuum. However, that would prevent any repairs. Since it was such a small leak, the correct procedure would be to find it (probably with smoke or a balloon) and attempt to plug it.
One thing at least the Russians are not selling the lone nut theory for this sabotage. How about a review of Apollo 1&13 accidents long overdue among others in the USA space program.