Story highlights Connections went dark after a routine computer software update

The station did not appear to be in danger

The loss in communications was not considered unprecedented

NASA restored communication with the International Space Station on Tuesday after connections went dark following a routine computer software update.

Before the fix, the space agency said the craft was able to communicate only every 90 minutes when it passed over ground stations in Russia.

"This is the same way they used to do it in the 1960s, with Gemini and Apollo," NASA spokesman Josh Byerly said.

The station, which is carrying two American astronauts, three Russian cosmonauts and a Canadian astronaut, did not appear to be in danger.

"It's not a panicked mood that takes over mission control," Byerly said before communications were fixed. "Anybody's who's been here has seen that."

Photos: Photos: Shuttling astronauts to the ISS Photos: Photos: Shuttling astronauts to the ISS Rocket shuttles astronauts to and from space – Three crew members returned to Earth from the International Space Station on Monday, November 19. Their Soyuz spacecraft landed near he town of Arkalyk in northern Kazakhstan. The trio had been on a four-month mission on the station. They were replaced by three new crew members, who arrived at the space station on October 23. Hide Caption 1 of 19 Photos: Photos: Shuttling astronauts to the ISS Rocket shuttles astronauts to and from space – Flight engineer Akihiko Hoshide of Japan, from left, Yuri Malenchenko of Russia, also a flight engineer, and Sunita Williams of the United States, mission commander, sit outside the Soyuz spacecraft minutes after landing on Monday. Hide Caption 2 of 19 Photos: Photos: Shuttling astronauts to the ISS Rocket shuttles astronauts to and from space – The Soyuz spacecraft sits on the snow in a remote area near Arkalyk, Kazakhstan, shortly after it landed on Monday. Hide Caption 3 of 19 Photos: Photos: Shuttling astronauts to the ISS Rocket shuttles astronauts to and from space – A Soyuz rocket took off on Tuesday, October 23, from Baikonur, Kazakhstan, carrying three new crew members to join co-workers on the International Space Station. Evgeny Tarelkin and Soyuz Cmdr. Oleg Novitskiy from Russia's space program and Kevin Ford from NASA will be on a five-month mission on the station. Hide Caption 4 of 19 Photos: Photos: Shuttling astronauts to the ISS Rocket shuttles astronauts to and from space – The Soyuz rocket shoots through the atmosphere on Tuesday with the new crew. Hide Caption 5 of 19 Photos: Photos: Shuttling astronauts to the ISS Rocket shuttles astronauts to and from space – Flight engineer Evgeny Tarelkin, top, flight engineer Kevin Ford and Soyuz Cmdr. Oleg Novitskiy wave farewell before boarding the Soyuz spacecraft just a few hours before launch. Hide Caption 6 of 19 Photos: Photos: Shuttling astronauts to the ISS Rocket shuttles astronauts to and from space – A train pulls the rocket to the launch pad on Sunday. Hide Caption 7 of 19 Photos: Photos: Shuttling astronauts to the ISS Rocket shuttles astronauts to and from space – A railroad engineer looks out from the locomotive that is used Sunday to deliver the Soyuz rocket to the launch pad. Hide Caption 8 of 19 Photos: Photos: Shuttling astronauts to the ISS Rocket shuttles astronauts to and from space – The Soyuz rocket is hoisted into position after being rolled out to the launch pad Sunday. Hide Caption 9 of 19 Photos: Photos: Shuttling astronauts to the ISS Rocket shuttles astronauts to and from space – Tarelkin gets his hair cut at the Cosmonaut Hotel on Sunday, October 21, at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Hide Caption 10 of 19 Photos: Photos: Shuttling astronauts to the ISS Rocket shuttles astronauts to and from space – Ford has a spacesuit fit check at NASA's Johnson Space Center. Hide Caption 11 of 19 Photos: Photos: Shuttling astronauts to the ISS Rocket shuttles astronauts to and from space – The Soyuz rocket is rolled out to the launch pad Sunday. Hide Caption 12 of 19 Photos: Photos: Shuttling astronauts to the ISS Rocket shuttles astronauts to and from space – Ford, left, Novitskiy and Tarelkin chat in front of a mockup of the Soyuz rocket before their final preflight practical examination at the Cosmonaut Training Centre in Star City, Russia, on September 21. Hide Caption 13 of 19 Photos: Photos: Shuttling astronauts to the ISS Rocket shuttles astronauts to and from space – Technicians prepare the Soyuz rocket to be erected at the launch pad on Sunday. Hide Caption 14 of 19 Photos: Photos: Shuttling astronauts to the ISS Rocket shuttles astronauts to and from space – The Expedition 33 backup crew, Russian cosmonaut Alexander Misurkin, left, Russian cosmonaut Pavel Vinogradov and NASA astronaut Chris Cassidy speak at a press conference at the Cosmonaut Hotel on Monday, October 22. Hide Caption 15 of 19 Photos: Photos: Shuttling astronauts to the ISS Rocket shuttles astronauts to and from space – The Soyuz rocket is rolled out to the launch pad by train on Sunday. Hide Caption 16 of 19 Photos: Photos: Shuttling astronauts to the ISS Rocket shuttles astronauts to and from space – Technicians prepare the Soyuz rocket to be erected Sunday at the launch pad. Hide Caption 17 of 19 Photos: Photos: Shuttling astronauts to the ISS Rocket shuttles astronauts to and from space – Ford straps into a seat of the Soyuz spacecraft on October 10 during the first of two "fit check" dress rehearsal sessions. Hide Caption 18 of 19 Photos: Photos: Shuttling astronauts to the ISS Rocket shuttles astronauts to and from space – The space shuttle Atlantis took this photo of the International Space Station in July 2011. Hide Caption 19 of 19

Aboard the station, Commander Kevin Ford told mission control during a pass over a Russian ground station that the craft was "still flying straight" and that everybody was "in good shape."

The loss in communications was not considered unprecedented, though it was thought to be a cause for concern, officials said.

The station is the product of a partnership among 16 nations and carries six laboratories for space research.