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ISS Fender Bender

Posted by michael on from the any-landing-you-can-walk-away-from dept.

wjsteele writes "Seems that the Space Station has had a minor fender bender. Sounds kind of scary... being in a space craft and hearing metal crunching (like an aluminum can.) Apparently some 'Minor' space debris struck the station around 2:30am this morning, while the astronauts were eating their wheaties." Update: 11/27 16:31 GMT by M : Looks like an experiment may be to blame.

5 of 248 comments (clear)

  1. Space Junk by Chatmag · · Score: 5, Informative

    A 1999 study estimated there are some 4 million pounds of space junk in low-Earth orbit, just one part of a celestial sea of roughly 110,000 objects larger than 1 centimeter -- each big enough to damage a satellite or space-based telescope.

    It's no wonder the ISS was hit. All they need is the space equivalent of the "adopt a highway" program, and a lot of plastic bags.

    --
    Pete Carr Owner Chatmag.com
  2. 30,000 km/s can do a lot of damage by asciimonster · · Score: 5, Informative

    I recall an insident with a space shuttle a few years ago. A flick of paint hit a window and left a fist-sized star in that window. That's the danger of space 30,000 km/s isn't a big deal in space, but having a collision at that speed is quite an impact.

    So anyone who still think the movie Armageddon is based on scientific facts. (Remember the body being flung againt the windscreen and it didn't even have a scratch?) Think again...

  3. A simplier explanation by doktorstop · · Score: 5, Informative

    The Russian Space Agency has just issued a simplier explanation. They've been trying to figure out what happened and came out with a different idea. No debris have hit the station. The sound was internal, coming from something that jammed a fan in the internal air ventilation system. This also has been confirmed by specialists from RosAviaKosmos (the company that built IIS =) Sorry, folks, the Mars attack theory will have to wait till next time =)

    --
    http://www.automatiq.se
  4. Re:Minor? by MouseR · · Score: 5, Informative

    There's no jumping off this one.

    Actually, yes there is.

    The ISS has a permanently docked Soyuz capsule for evacuation purposes.

    Some details, here, also indicate that the incident you mention actually took place in 1997.

    NASA also have info on the escape capsule.

  5. Re:2:30 AM, eh? by jfoust · · Score: 5, Informative

    According to the Houston Chronicle, among other sources, the incident took place at 1:59 am CST (0759 GMT) Wednesday.