A high-stakes race against a leaking ammonia coolant system in orbit

Space · Published 13 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: Watch how NASA engineers executed a rapid-response spacewalk to repair a critical thermal control failure on the International Space Station.

Following an ammonia coolant leak on the station's P6 truss, NASA flight engineers Chris Cassidy and Tom Marshburn conducted a 5-hour and 30-minute spacewalk. The mission was a high-pressure turnaround, occurring just 48 hours after the leak was detected.

The team replaced a suspect pump controller box responsible for distributing coolant throughout the station's thermal control system. Once the spare pump was installed and powered on, the system stabilized with no further signs of ammonia leakage.

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