US Space Command: Russian Satellite Shootdown Will Threaten Space Activities ‘For Years to Come’
(Worthy News) – Just five days after the International Space Station was forced to maneuver to dodge orbiting debris originating from Beijing’s controversial 2007 shootdown of a Chinese weather satellite, Russia on Monday destroyed a satellite of its own, adding more than 1,500 pieces of “trackable” debris into space.
The United States slammed Russia over the use of an anti-satellite (ASAT) missile to destroy a defunct Soviet-era spy satellite, calling it “dangerous and irresponsible” and pointing out that the resulting debris will be littering space for years to come.
The Russian action forced the crew of the ISS – two Russians, four Americans, and a German – to again take precautionary evasive measures, this time sheltering in the capsules that ferry astronauts to the station – Russia’s Soyuz MS-19 and the SpaceX capsule Crew Dragon. [ Source: CNS News (Read More…) ]