The new space station lost a power source due to a short circuit

Everything is still being maintained normally in the laboratory and the astronauts are safe.

ISS loses a power source due to short circuit

Right now, the ISS International Space Station is in a state of losing one of its power supplies. The cause is determined by a device that has a short circuit.

This incident will require a space walking task to overcome. However, astronauts will not be able to do this because spare parts can only be provided by SpaceX's early 2016 supply flight.

The international space station is operating without a power supply.

Thus, until early next year, the International Space Station will operate without a major power supply. However, the incident is not to the extent of causing great damage. Everything is still being maintained normally in the labs and of course the astronauts are safe.

It must be said that this is not the first time ISS faces the operation of a power supply shortage. Just last year, a similar short-circuiting incident occurred and was only overcome by the task of walking space.

Typically, the International Space Station has eight main power supply sources, each of which is connected to eight different solar panels. In this incident, a short-circuit current caused a power channel to be disconnected. It requires astronauts to reroute the devices that are using this energy channel to the remaining channels.

This temporary measure can be easily done inside the station. And that is also the reason why ISS must have many different energy channels. The later repair is also relatively simple, just wait for the replacement equipment brought up by SpaceX during the first supply trip in 2016.

The incident will be overcome by a space walking task.

Besides SpaceX, NASA is also relying on another commercial supplier, Orbital ATK, to transport food and necessities through flights to ISS. The next Orbital ATK shipment will be ready in 2 weeks. However, because every package is completely packed, NASA cannot ask for additional equipment for this incident.

Just like SapceX of Elon Musk had a missile launch test in June, Orbital ATK also had its own incidents. Last year they had an explosion in rocket launch flight Antares. During the supply phase on December 3, the Orbital ATK will use Atlas V missiles to transport supplies to the International Space Station. Atlas V is a much more reliable rocket.

Return to ISS is losing one of its eight main power sources. This news may not make you worry too much about the safety of astronauts because it is just a simple incident. However, we can also imagine how difficult it is to provide spare parts and equipment between the ground and the space. In a happy way, I could not find a screwdriver shop in orbit.