FLORIDA, Aug 13: The crew of Russia's battered Mir space station is down to only one-and-a-half to two months of drinking water and could run out if a National Aeronautics Space Administration (NASA) shuttle doesn't get there on time in late September.

A Russian cargo ship also is supposed to take up water in early October, but that might be too late.

Normally, humidity aboard Mir is condensed and recycled into drinking water. But the crew can no longer rely on the system because the water may be contaminated by anti-freeze fumes from leaks months ago in the cooling system.

Space officials won't know for sure whether the water is safe until returning cosmonauts bring back a sample later this week.

If Mir's water-reclamation system remains unusable, the drinking water stored in bags on board probably will last only until late September, said Frank Culbertson, manager of NASA's shuttle-Mir programme. Otherwise, there should be enough until early October.

News of the dwindling water supply came yesterday on top of continued problems with Mir's air supply: The new elektron oxygen generator won't work, possibly because of a clog, and the spare can't work because of a lack of power.

Mir was reduced to half power after a cargo ship slammed into it on June 25 and ruptured a pressurised lab module.

The four Russians and American Michael Foale are relying on solid-fuel canisters to generate oxygen, but they are not exactly reliable. One such canister burst into flames in February.

``At this moment, the elektron is the more immediate problem, although I believe it will be resolved in the near future,'' Culbertson said. ``I think the overall water situation, in terms of how much is on board and how far it will stretch, is something we're going to have to watch carefully.''

The two cosmonauts leaving Mir tomorrow in one of the two attached Soyuz capsules will bring back a water sample.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.