UPDATE As of 11:34 a.m., communication has been restored with the space station, NASA said via Twitter.
According to CNN International, NASA lost communication with the International Space Station on Tuesday and has established only sporadic connections since, according to NASA spokesman Josh Byerly.
The space agency told CNN it is currently only able to communicate every 90 minutes when the facility passes over ground stations in Russia.
The station, which is carrying one American astronaut and two Russian cosmonauts, does not appear to be in danger, Byerly told CNN.
The loss in communications is not considered unprecedented, though it’s considered a cause for concern, officials told CNN.
NASA issued this message early Tuesday morning:
“This morning, at approximately 9:45 a.m. EST, the International Space Station experienced a loss of communication with the ground. At that time, flight controllers in Houston were updating the software onboard the station’s flight computers when one of the station’s data relay systems malfunctioned. The primary computer that controls critical station functions defaulted to a backup computer, but was not allowing the station to communicate with NASA’s Tracking and Data Relay Satellites.”
“Mission Control Houston was able to communicate with the crew as the space station flew over Russian ground stations before 11:00 a.m. EST and instructed the crew to connect a backup computer to begin the process of restoring communications. Expedition 34 Commander Kevin Ford reported that the station’s status was fine and that the crew was doing well. More details will follow as events warrant.”
