Fracture on Soyuz spacecraft most likely caused by technological error

A fracture in the Soyuz MS-09 spacecraft was caused by a technological error, various theories are being considered, CEO of Russia’s state space corporation Roscosmos Dmitry Rogozin said on Monday.

"We are considering all the theories. The one about a meteorite impact has been rejected because the spaceship’s hull was evidently impacted from inside. However it is too early to say definitely what happened. But, it seems to be done by a faltering hand… it is a technological error by a specialist. It was done by a human hand - there are traces of a drill sliding along the surface. We don’t reject any theories," he said.

"It is a matter of honor for Energia Rocket and Space Corporation to find the one responsible for that, to find out whether it was an accidental defect or a deliberate spoilage and where it was done - either on Earth or in space. Now it is essential to see the reason, to learn the name of the one responsible for that. And we will find out, without fail," he pledged.

A pressure drop was registered on the International Space Station overnight to August 30. It was subsequently found that the pressure was dropping due a 2mm fracture in the hull of the Russian manned Soyuz MS-09 spacecraft docked to the orbital outpost.

Russia’s Mission Control Center instructed Russian cosmonauts Oleg Artemyev and Sergei Prokopyev to plug the hole in the space vehicle with the epoxy-based sealant.

The work was accomplished on Thursday evening. After that, the Russian cosmonauts made photos and video records of the hole and monitored its condition and pressure on the space station every hour. According to Roscosmos’s data, pressure on the orbital outpost is holding stable after the repairs.