At 9:45 this morning, during a software update to the International Space Station's flight computers, one system malfunctioned causing a loss in communication between NASA on the ground and NASA in space. According to Expedition 34 commander Kevin Ford, "the station's status was fine and that the crew was doing well," NASA was able to learn as the ISS flew over Russian ground stations a bit before 11 am. According to CNN's Stephanie Gallman, NASA will be able to communicate with the astronauts on board each time the ISS passes over Russian ground stations, every 90 minutes or so. According to Gallman, "This is not an unprecedented event, but any loss of communications not good." There are currently six men living on the space station, three Russian cosmonauts, two Americans, and one Canadian.
Update 12:44 EST: NASA says that communication has been restored.
sponsored
Event: Digital Government Success: Meeting the Call for 21st Century Government
Performance Analytics: What It Means for Your Agency
What Big Data Means for TSA & Airport Security
How DHS is Mondernzing Mobile Procurement
JOIN THE DISCUSSION
By using this service you agree not to post material that is obscene, harassing, defamatory, or otherwise objectionable. Although Nextgov does not monitor comments posted to this site (and has no obligation to), it reserves the right to delete, edit, or move any material that it deems to be in violation of this rule.