The alarm was called off after an hour: everything returned to normal on the International Space Station (ISS). On the night between June 26 and 27, the crew faced an emergency due to the fragmentation of a decommissioned Russian satellite, weighing about six tons. The risk of collision with the debris forced the astronauts to take refuge in the docked shuttles, but after just an hour the alert was lifted and activities resumed regularly.
Accident Details
Shortly after 3am Italian time, NASA has alerted the ISS crew to take refuge in their spacecraft. The report concerned the breakup of the Russian satellite Resurs-P1, which occurred at an altitude of about 350 kilometers, slightly lower than that of the International Space Station. The incident generated more than 100 traceable pieces of debris, according to the U.S. Space Command.
A Russian Satellite Destroyed: The Safety Measures
“Mission control continued to monitor the debris path,” NASA said. After about an hour, the astronauts were cleared to exit the shuttles and operations on the ISS returned to normal. Standard safety measures include sheltering in the shuttles in the event of a potential impact with space debris.
What happened to the Resurs-P1 satellite?
The Resurs-P1 satellite, launched in 2013 for the observation of Earth and out of service since 2022, broke up during its orbit. Satellite monitoring company LeoLabs detected the event, confirming that the satellite’s altitude at the time of the accident was about 350 kilometers.
The situation on the ISS has returned to normal thanks to the crew’s readiness and NASA’s continuous monitoring. Episodes like this highlight the importance of safety measures adopted in space to protect astronauts from potential risks.
Have you ever wondered how emergencies are handled in space? Reply in the comments!
#Russian #Satellite #Destroyed #ISS #Astronauts #Safe
