2023-11-17 11:18:25
The two astronauts out on the ISS got a little extra adrenaline rush a few days ago, when they accidentally dropped a tool kit! Deemed safe for the Space Station, the object is now in orbit around the Earth and its trajectory can even be followed from the ground!
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[EN VIDÉO] ISS: the lights of the Earth seen from the Space Station Filmed from the International Space Station (ISS), the night sky appears illuminated by our lighting….
Oops ! This is what the two astronauts, Jasmin Moghbeli and Loral O’Hara, must have thought during their extravehicular exit on November 1st. While they are in the process to repair a solar panel on the ISSthe kit which contains the tools necessary for the mission accidentally escapes from their hands.
It was certainly with a touch of anguish that they must have watched her move away into space. Because the object that had been so useful until then suddenly transformed into a projectile representing a potential threat to the International Space Station. A few trajectory calculations, however, made it possible to quickly rule out any risk of collision with the tool kit, which, in passing, was cataloged as a new artificial object in orbit and referenced with the number 58229/1998-067WC. The two astronauts were therefore able to sleep peacefully.
A new object in orbit visible from the ground!
This is not the first time, and certainly not the last, that tools have been lost in space during a spacewalk. Fortunately, this type of incident has so far not caused any damage or endangered the lives of the astronauts.
A tool kit recently lost by NASA astronauts during a spacewalk is now in orbit around Earth. © K, YouTube
The tool kit now travels alone and is also visible from the ground, provided you have a small telescope or good binoculars. It moves almost at the same speed as the ISS, on the same route, but is ahead of the station by a minute in the form of a tiny bright point (luminosityluminosity of magnitudemagnitude 6). It should remain visible for a few months before ending its course in the atmosphereatmosphere and disintegrating.
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