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Russia fired a missile on Monday (November 15) to destroy an old satellite, causing a thick cloud of debris. The astronauts of the International Space Station (ISS) had to take emergency refuge in their evacuation vessels.
“We have just been informed that a satellite has been destroyed. You must join the refuge areas.“This message was issued Monday, November 15 by the base of Houston (United States). The American, Russian and German astronauts who replaced Thomas Pesquet in the International Space Station (ISS) thus had to take refuge in capsules , ready to urgently bring them back to Earth.
The Russians fired a missile from Earth at one of their old satellites, 500 km above sea level. The latter was sprayed. The explosion produced 1,500 pieces of debris, which spun in the same orbit as the ISS, some even passing within a kilometer. The Americans did not hide their anger. French side, same concern. “It is dangerous, because this shot caused the dissemination of space debris which will take years to disappear.“, declared Florence Parly, Minister of the Armed Forces. For their part, the Russians have played down the incident.
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