Topic: Speaking of "misc. debris..."

[xykotik]

Has anyone heard more about the duck-and-cover exercise on the ISS?  I only see a couple of paragraphs on the news sites, but I know there are plenty of devoted spaceys here that know better sources.

I have always found it fascinating that they can track all of the specks of junk, yet they still call the piece in question today "unidentified."  Although, this screen-cap of physorg.com seems to identify the junk early in the story.

[Downlinerz2]

    That article pretty much sums it up.  They can either change the orbit an maneuver out of the way.  I saw on NASA TV once that the astronauts and cosmonauts went into one of the modules that has the heaviest shielding.  And they can get into the Soyuz and abandon ship so to speak.  That has to be something always on their minds with so many small pieces of junk flying around at very high speeds.  A small bolt hitting the station that is moving at 17,000 mph could cause catastrophic damage.  And the risk is just growing and growing.
     Mark
ADDED:  This pic of two ISS crew members looking over the emergency manual.  It looks pretty big and I think it says Vol 2 on the cover.   

[IMADreamer]

Holy cow that's a big book!  I suppose being in space your emergency manual would be quite large though. 

[Downlinerz2]

     When I wrote my earlier reply I did not realize that this had happened today!   They had to spend much of the day in the 2 Soyuz capsules docked to the station.  Thanks for posting that xykotic!!!  I have not heard anything about it on the news.
    Mark

[Cienega32]

ADDED:  This pic of two ISS crew members looking over the emergency manual.  It looks pretty big and I think it says Vol 2 on the cover.   

And the guy on the left looks like he's wondering, "I wonder if he realizes that none of this will really matter..."

[d_l]

There is orbital space junk and then there is real space junk.  I realize this junk was well above the ISS orbit, but someday, a pile of gravel flying in formation might make it down to the station's orbit.

[xykotik]

This pic of two ISS crew members looking over the emergency manual.  It looks pretty big and I think it says Vol 2 on the cover.   

That immediately had me remembering the movie "2001" and humming Strauss.

"ZERO GRAVITY TOILET"
"PASSENGERS ARE ADVISED TO READ INSTRUCTIONS BEFORE USE"

[Downlinerz2]

There is orbital space junk and then there is real space junk.  I realize this junk was well above the ISS orbit, but someday, a pile of gravel flying in formation might make it down to the station's orbit.

    Last night I watched the replay of the news conference of the Shuttle/ISS Mission team (or some such thing) and they said that this "unknown" piece of junk passes the ISS at 350 meters (it was in the 300's I am foggy this AM), and that was the closest they have had.
    Mark

[DanS]

... or closest that they're aware of.

[Downlinerz2]

... or closest that they're aware of.

   Excellent point!   
     Mark