sourceWASHINGTON - NASA briefly declared an emergency Monday morning aboard the international space station after a chemical leak of potassium hydroxide caused a strong odor and produced what the crew initially thought was smoke.
But NASA officials said the leak of the chemical, used in an oxygen-generating unit, was not considered a serious health threat to the three-man crew.
Michael Suffredini, head of the space station program, said the crew initially thought there was smoke, and possibly a fire, in the cabin. Crew members put on gloves and surgical masks and were told to place a charcoal filter into the ventilation system to clean the chemical from the station's air. In a short time, however, it was determined that the "smoke" was in fact vapor coming from the leak.
Tags: Washington | smoke | NASA | crew | leak | briefly | cleans | hydroxide | potassium
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