The first alleged crime in space is under investigation, according to reports in the US.

NASA is thought to be probing a claim an astronaut accessed the bank account of her estranged spouse from the International Space Station, in what may be the first allegation of a crime committed in space.

Anne McClain acknowledges accessing the account from the ISS but denies any wrongdoing, the New York Times reports.

Her estranged wife, Summer Worden, reportedly filed a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission.
This NASA photo shows NASA astronaut Christina Koch (C) assisting fellow astronauts Nick Hague (L) and Anne McClain (R) (
Image:
AFP/Getty Images)

Ms McClain, who spent six months aboard the ISS, has since returned to Earth.

The astronaut told the New York Times through a lawyer that she was merely making sure that the family’s finances were in order and there was enough money to pay bills and care for Ms Worden’s son - who they had been raising together prior to the split.
NASA astronaut Anne McClain during a spacesuit check (
Image:
Sergei Savostyanov/TASS)

“She strenuously denies that she did anything improper,” said her lawyer, Rusty Hardin, adding that Ms McClain was “totally co-operating”.

Ms McClain graduated from the prestigious West Point military academy and flew more than 800 combat hours over Iraq as an Army pilot. She went on to qualify as a test pilot and was chosen to fly for Nasa in 2013.