“ISS threatened to collide with space debris” – crew safe

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“ISS threatened to collide with space debris” – crew brought to safety

The ISS on an archive image - The ISS on an archive image -

The ISS on an archive image – “Precautions will continue to be followed”

Source: AFP / –

Because a cloud of space junk apparently came threateningly close to the International Space Station, the crew had to get to safety. In addition, Russia shot down a satellite – according to the US State Department a “ruthless test” that also “endangered the interests of all nations”.

Dhe seven-person crew of the International Space Station is in acute danger from being hit by a cloud of space debris. In an unusual step, the crew with the German astronaut Matthias Maurer was asked to visit their space capsules. There is greater protection against a sudden loss of pressure if the ISS is hit. If necessary, a decoupling from the ISS would be possible.

The German Aerospace Center (DLR) announced on Twitter: “ISS threatened to collide with space debris. The crew switched to docked spaceships to be on the safe side. ”The European Space Agency ESA just said:“ The precautionary measures will continue to be followed, the crew is safe. ”

The safety escape into the two docked space capsules – a modern American Dragon capsule and a tried and tested Russian Soyuz capsule – is a trained but unusual measure. It is constantly being investigated whether the ISS could be hit by space debris and therefore orbit changes are made regularly. It was only shortly before the flight of the German astronaut Maurer in a four-person crew that the ISS was corrected, which orbits the earth at an altitude of around 400 kilometers. These maneuvers have become almost routine due to the growing volume of space debris. Experts are therefore increasingly warning of the dangers of space debris.

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ESA astronaut Matthias Maurer - here taken in front of the Elon Musk rocket in the foyer of the new Axel Springer building in Berlin

Astronaut Matthias Maurer

The current alerting of the crew took place at short notice, which indicates a special event as the cause. But that’s not all: Obviously, there is a risk of the ISS colliding with at least parts of the junk cloud. The ISS crew was asked to keep most of the hatches between the modules of the ISS closed until Tuesday, reports industry services such as “Spaceflightnow” that there will be significant changes in the schedule of activities on board the ISS. On Monday evening, Central European Time, the ISS crew left their capsules again, but some internal hatches remained closed.

It is unusual that the Pentagon intervened with a message about the situation on board the ISS. As stated in the announcement, the US Space Command has noted “a debris event in space”. Literally: “We are actively working on characterizing the debris field and will continue to ensure that all space travel nations have the information they need to maneuver satellites if they are affected.” Various agencies are involved, including the State Department and NASA. All indications of a major incident.

Experts believe that launching satellites for exercise is dangerous

Almost simultaneously with the reports about the debris field in space, reports appeared on the Internet about an old Russian satellite (Kosmos 1408) being shot down by a rocket launched from Earth. Russia has carried out an anti-satellite test, it is said, and also destroyed the obsolete satellite that has been circling in space since 1982.

US State Department Condemns Russia’s “Ruthless Test”

US media also speak of a shooting down of a Russian satellite. As reported by the US news broadcaster CNN, the US is concerned that Russia carried out a large test of anti-satellite weapons over the weekend. Two US officials explained this to the broadcaster. In the current Pentagon announcement, however, Russia is not named by name.

The US government has accused Russia of jeopardizing the safety of the astronauts. “We condemn Russia’s ruthless test,” said US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday evening (local time). The bombardment of the satellite created space junk “which endangers the lives of astronauts, the integrity of the international space station and the interests of all nations”.

The industry expert Gunter Krebs describes in a recent tweet these anti-satellite tests as irresponsible because astronauts and objects in orbit would be endangered. In view of the constantly increasing density of objects in low earth orbit, this increases the risk of a domino effect. Experts speak of Kessler syndrome, in which more and more debris is created.

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ESA astronaut Matthias Maurer - here taken in front of the Elon Musk rocket in the foyer of the Axel Springer new building in Berlin

Astronaut Matthias Maurer

The test of the Russian anti-satellite weapon took place even though two Russians are also on board the ISS. NASA astronauts Raja Chari, Tom Marshburn, Kayla Barron and ESA astronaut Matthias Maurer are currently on board, who docked with the Dragon capsule on the ISS. Also the Russian cosmonauts Anton Shkaplerov, Pyotr Dubrov and the NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei, who use a Soyuz capsule.

In addition to Russia, anti-satellite weapons have already been tested in the USA, China and India. This practice shooting always triggers violent protests among scientists because of the debris field in space. With good reason: The largest field of debris in space caused by a single event was created in 2007 when the Chinese shot down their “Fengyun-1C” weather satellite, creating over 40,000 dangerous pieces of junk in orbit.

It is noteworthy that Russia apparently tried a missile launch from Earth in the current anti-satellite test. Russia also has attack or eavesdropping satellites already stationed in space and not only tested enemy approaches to foreign satellites, but also destroyed them on its own objects.

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