Bad news about the International Space Station, which has come to the fore with new cracks detected recently and is about to fill its mandate, continues to come.

After Roscosmos astronauts detected new cracks in the Zarya module recently, the situation of the ISS came to the fore once again; After the incident, both NASA and Roscosmos astronauts stated that the cracks in question were not in a position to harm them.

But these cracks aren’t the first, and apparently won’t be the last:

The first part of the International Space Station was sent into low Earth orbit in 1998, and the station’s mission continues with modules added since then. But now the mandate for the station is about to expire. As of 2024, the ISS’s mission will come to an end, and as the end approaches, the problems that show its age have started to increase in the station.

An important statement stating that the situation should be investigated seriously came from retired NASA astronaut Bill Shepherd, who served as the captain of the first crew working on the International Space Station. Shepherd told the United States House of Representatives to give due attention to the issue and take the situation seriously.

These explanations and warnings are not the kind of explanations NASA would like. Because although Roscosmos has made statements that the mission of the ISS should no longer continue and the situation is dangerous, NASA is seeking funding to continue its missions on the station until 2028. Shepherd, on the other hand, stated that there may be other cracks in the station that have not yet been detected; He recommends that the situation be seriously investigated before a decision is made to extend his mandate for another 4 years, even if it is not an emergency.

In his statement, Shepherd also stated that the cause of the cracks in the station has not yet been determined ‘as far as he knows’.