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Space Emergency: ISS Astronauts Forced To Hide In Crew Capsules For Safety
Astronauts at the International Space Station had to take cover locking themselves in the return capsules when an unexpected threat of incoming debris set on an emergency mode. The event took place just days after the ISS maneuvered to avoid collision with the debris from the Chinese satellite Fengyun-1C that exploded into an estimated 3,500 pieces in 2007. Space debris continues to be a major problem and while maneuvers to avoid debris are common for the ISS, the latest one caught them off guard.
The ISS has been in the spotlight lately for a number of not-so-great reasons. New and old cracks, the eventual decommissioning, and how it will be replaced with a new station are some of the topics that have been in the news as of late. The frosty relations between NASA, Russia's Roscosmos, and China's space agency aren't making the space station's future any more clear.
On November 15 astronauts in the ISS found themselves living a nightmare. Houston ordered a “shelter in place” when they saw unexpected debris coming out of nowhere. The order rapidly motivated astronauts to take shelter inside the escape spacecraft of the ISS, which are the crew capsules that carried travelers to the space station initially. Moments later the US military communicated they were tracking new debris and had high concerns over an anti-satellite weapon test conducted by Russia over the weekend.
Another ISS Wake-Up Call, One Too Many
The debris field orbit reached the ISS several times throughout the day. The crew closed the hatches of the capsules knowing that if the ISS were to be badly hit they would have to do an emergency undocking and return to Earth. US astronauts Mark Vande Hei and Russian cosmonauts Anton Shkaplerov and Peter Dubrov took shelter in the Soyuz spacecraft. US astronauts Raja Chari, Thomas Marshburn, and Kayla Barron, and German astronaut Matthias Maurer were ordered to take shelter in the SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule.
NASA transmitted communications live as the debris field passed. No loss of pressure and no impact were reported. Although astronauts were able to emerge from the capsules later in the day, parts of the ISS were sealed off and declared off-limits. Astronaut Matthias Maurer’s living quarters were also sealed off forcing him to sleep in the European-built Node 2.
Later that day, the US State Department confirmed the Russian anti-satellite missile test and identified it as the root cause of the incident. For months the international satellite sector has been advocating for a safe satellite environment and the end of satellite kill operations, noting that they represent a risk to human life. This new ISS emergency revealed just how real the threat is. We can only imagine what went through the ISS crew's heads as they waited for hundreds or maybe thousands of pieces of debris in space to fly by.
