Science Fiction (written early 1900 before Lunar landing) About Astronauts encountering a pathogen that consumes oxygen

[Tricia]

Genre: Science Fiction (written early 1900 before Lunar landing, I believe it had a blue and black cover)
Satellite collecting gas, soil etc... samples returns to Space Exploration Base (cannot recall if Mars or the Moon), but one of the panels of a sample collector falls off. Due to this the Astronauts are exposed to a pathogen that makes them consume additional oxygen compared to normal, making them burn through their space station reserves and limiting them to the use of their own suit oxygen. Saved by algae that produces enough oxygen to support them.

I do believe it was written before the lunar landing occurred, but I could be wrong as I read this as a child.

[Capn]

Hi,

Just to clarify, you mean it was written pre-1968, but not actually at the turn of the century (1900-1910), right?

So it could have been a pulpy 1960s space exploration sort of deal?

Was it otherwise realistic, or was it written pre-space age? (Like, would NASA and Cape Canaveral/Cape Kennedy have existed? Space shuttles or rockets?)

[Tricia]

I read this over 2 decades ago so my memory is a bit hazy. As I recall it took the science seriously, but was written before lunar landing so the habitat and all that is NASA inspired but I dont remember if they call it NASA.

I believe it was a habitat, a surface 'rover's vehicle to travel in, and rockets to return to earth. But there was also a sample collecting 'satellite'.

I remember a scene where one astronaut smashes his colleagues face into a tray of algae to try and save him, and another scene where they are in their own suits and using the air in there to try and limit the total usage. It wasnt a long novel bit wasnt a short story either.

[Capn]

No worries!

Ah, perfect! You remember quite a lot! :) Someone will surely recognize this