“We hope that the tension between the states disappears and that then, we will be left to work”French astronaut Thomas Pesquet reacted on Franceinfo on Tuesday, November 16, while Russia admitted having sprayed one of its satellites in orbit during a test shot. This shot generated a cloud of debris potentially dangerous for the International Space Station (ISS) and forced the seven crew members to take temporary refuge in their ships docked at the station to allow their evacuation if necessary. NATO denounced “an irresponsible act”, while Russia ruled “hypocrites” statements from the United States accusing him of endangering the lSS crew.
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“It must have felt a little funny for them to get on the space station, to find their bearings, to start the job very slowly, and then to be greeted by an emergency situation like this”, explains Thomas Pesquet, thinking of his colleagues, the four Crew-3 astronauts who have just relayed him in space aboard the ISS.
Is the astronaut worried about this kind of danger? “Not really.” Taking shelter is one of the “scenarios for which we are preparing, in the event that we need to get to safety, specifies Thomas Pesquet. A great deal of care is taken to ensure that space flight remains safe for the participants, for the mission, for the equipment, for the space station. As soon as we have the slightest doubt we prepare for the worst eventuality. There, the debris cloud did not approach very close to the station but they still chose to get into the best conditions – and it was the right decision to make. It made them react quite quickly but that’s what we train for, it’s part of the job. “
“Within the crews, there is always a good understanding even if at the level of the States it is stretching a little bit.”
Thomas Pesquet, astronautto franceinfo
According to Thomas Pesquet, there is little risk that tensions around the debris incident will trouble the crew aboard the ISS, four American astronauts, a German astronaut and two Russian cosmonauts. “The tensions are rather at the state level. We, on board, as part of a crew, always get along well. Obviously, we don’t talk politics every four mornings. Politics and religion, if you want to argue, these are subjects that work 99% of the time. You have the intelligence to keep your opinions and convictions private to yourself and to make it work. It’s one of the roles of the Space Station to show that cooperation works. “