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+--- Thread: Space junk zipped by SpaceX's Dragon capsule on its way to space station (vehicles) (/thread-10238.html)
Space junk zipped by SpaceX's Dragon capsule on its way to space station (vehicles) - C C - Apr 25, 2021
https://www.livescience.com/spacex-crew-2-dragon-capsule-space-junk.html
INTRO: The astronauts of SpaceX's Crew-2 mission for NASA had a brief moment of suspense after their spectacular launch on Friday (April 23) when a piece of space debris passed unexpectedly close by their Crew Dragon capsule. The space junk encounter, called a conjunction, occurred at 1:43 p.m. EDT (1743 GMT) as the four Crew-2 astronauts were preparing to sleep after a long day. Their Crew Dragon Endeavour docked at the space station early Saturday.
"For awareness, we have identified a late breaking possible conjunction with a fairly close miss distance to Dragon," SpaceX's Sarah Gilles told the astronauts about 20 minutes before the conjunction on Friday. "As such, we do need you to immediately proceed with suit donning and securing yourselves in seats." Gilles told the astronauts to get back into their spacesuits and seats as safety precaution in case of an impact. You can watch the exchange here, courtesy of Raw Science.
[...] Such close encounters with space junk have occurred several times over the years, with the International Space Station and some NASA shuttles occasionally moving to dodge debris as a safety measure. The space station is huge, about the size of a football field, but SpaceX's Crew Dragon — a space capsule — is relatively small at just under 27 feet long (8 meters)... (MORE - details)