The Russian module “Nauka” successfully turned on the propulsion system and began to increase the altitude of its orbit

The Russian module “Science” successfully turned on the propulsion system and began to increase the height of its orbit, informs Roscosmos. This information is also confirm independent observations made with Doppler radar.

Earlier edition of N + 1 reported citing a source in the rocket and space industry that the module encountered malfunctions in the fuel system. The interlocutor of the publication suggested that too high a pressure was created in the fuel system, as a result of which the bellows broke and the fuel flowed out into the gas cavity behind the bellows membrane. Some of the fuel may not get into the pipelines and engines, which jeopardizes the module’s ability to reach the ISS.

The rocket was launched on July 21 at 17:58 Moscow time. Docking of the module with the International Space Station is scheduled for July 29.

The “Science” module began to be developed back in 1995. It was planned to be launched to the ISS in 2007, but the launch has been postponed many times. The long delay was due to a manufacturing defect that left metal shavings in the fuel system.

This module was supposed to become the main platform for experiments in the Russian segment of the ISS. Inside the module there are several workplaces for scientific equipment, outside there are universal adapters for installing research equipment.