MOSCOW, May 30 (RIA Novosti) - Official spokesman for the Mission Control Valery Lyndin reports that the crew of the International Space Station (ISS) burn two oxygen cartridges daily.
"Because of the limited lifespan of so-called solid fuel oxygen generators, or oxygen cartridges, the crew have burned two cartridges daily of late," the official said.
The use of solid fuel oxygen generators is indispensable for maintaining the air balance the station, where the oxygen regeneration system has failed from time to time.
"On Monday Sergei Krikalyov and John Phillips will check the pressure measuring unit of the oxygen system," the representative of the Mission Control said.
The failing Electron Russian oxygen regenerating system poses no threat to crews of the ISS.
Almost all the previous crews on board the station provided maintenance for this complicated system. And Sergei Krikalyov and John Phillips are not an exception either.
"This is known to be a long-standing problem, and one of the defective units is to be replaced in June. However, the air balance is all right on board now as it was a year ago. Otherwise, we would have decided to return the astronauts to the Earth," the Mission Control reported.
"The Progress M-52 cargo ship has delivered three times as much oxygen supply as usual, consequently there are not and will not be any problems with air supply on board," the official spokesman said.
