Report: ISS Hole Drilled From Inside, Cosmonaut Says

Russian cosmonaut Sergei Prokopyev said that a mysterious hole in the Soyuz capsule docked at the International Space Station drilled from inside, according to the Associated Press.

Prokopyev was one of two cosmonauts who examined holes during "unprecedented" space travel on December 11. This report is the latest in the story for many months that turned out to be strange.

The scientists saw a pressure leak on the ISS back on August 29 this year. They determined the source was a 2 millimeter hole in the Soyuz capsule and quickly filled it with epoxy. NASA reports that astronauts are never in danger.

Since then, photographs of holes revealed that it looked very horrible like a drill hole. The Russian authorities indicated that it could come from "deliberate decay," but stopped making direct allegations.

Yury Borisov, Russia's deputy prime minister for the Defense and Space Industry, vehemently denied any attempt to "[compromise the reputation] either our cosmonauts, or American astronauts, "according to the Russian government news agency RIA Novosti.

Prokopyev and Russian cosmonaut Oleg Kononenko inspected the hole at a complex spacecraft on December 11, which required the separation of part of the capsule meteorite shield.

Not much detail at this time – and it's unclear whether the hole was made on Earth or in space. Pablo De Leon, professor in extraordinary activities and design of outerwear in the Department of Space Studies at the University of North Dakota, Grand Forks, told us in September that microgravity would be very difficult to drill such holes in space.

And indeed, Prokopyev said that it would be a further investigation to determine when the hole was made.

So, even though this might be a new development in the story, it hasn't changed much. We still don't know who drilled the hole or when, and the investigation continues. Prokopyev denied that the hole could be drilled by an astronaut.

We have contacted NASA to comment and will continue to provide you with the latest information about this story as it develops.

[Associated Press]