14 DAY TRIAL // The International Space Station is suffering an ammonia leak from one of the solar arrays powering the station. While the problem is serious, the crew is in no immediate danger.
ISS Commander Chris Hadfield, who usually uses his Twitter account to post spectacular photos from space, confirmed that there is a problem and that the ISS and ground crews are working on it.
"Station's power relies on ammonia coolant. A few hours ago, we determined that the ammonia was leaking out of the Station and into space," he said.
"It is a serious situation, but between crew and experts on the ground, it appears to have been stabilized. Tomorrow we find out for certain," he added.
Astronauts noticed white flakes coming out from somewhere on the solar array. There have been similar problems like this; astronauts performed a spacewalk last year to fix the issue.
It's unclear whether this problem is related or not. Ammonia is used in the cooling system of the array, which is vital for the station.
However, the systems for each battery are separate and can be shut down individually. Power can be rerouted from the rest of the array, though fixing the issue could require a portion of the ISS to be powered down.