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Russia says hole on International Space Station was made deliberately

‘Manufacturing defect’ ruled out after initial investigations, Moscow says

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The International Space Station in an undated picture. Photo: NASA via AP

Russian investigators looking into the origin of a hole that caused an oxygen leak on the International Space Station have said it was caused deliberately, the space agency chief said.

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A first commission had delivered its report, Dmitry Rogozin, the head of the Russian space agency Roskosmos, said in televised remarks late on Monday.

“It concluded that a manufacturing defect had been ruled out which is important to establish the truth.”

The hole found in the International Space Station. Photo: EPA
The hole found in the International Space Station. Photo: EPA
Rogozin said the commission’s main line of inquiry was that the hole had been drilled deliberately, a position that has been voiced in the past.
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“Where it was made will be established by a second commission, which is at work now,” he said.

The small hole in the wall of a Russian-made Soyuz space capsule docked onto the ISS was found in August and quickly sealed up.

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