A pair of dangerously close space encounters are adding to tensions between the U.S. and China, while underscoring the potential peril to astronauts from orbital congestion.
A pair of dangerously close space encounters are adding to tensions between the U.S. and China, while underscoring the potential peril to astronauts as satellite constellations and debris proliferate in orbit.
In both instances, the orbiting lab made evasive maneuvers to avoid the Starlink satellites operated by Elon Musk’s space venture. The margin for a near miss in October could have been as little as a few hundred meters if the astronauts onboard the space station hadn’t shifted to a different altitude, according to data compiled by astrophysicist Jonathan McDowell.in a Dec. 6 memo to a United Nations committee that oversees operations in space.
China’s memo cites Starlink-1095, which had operated at an average altitude of 555 kilometers earlier this year, before descending to 382 kilometers and having a “close encounter” with the China Space Station on July 1. An incident with a separate Starlink satellite occurred Oct. 21.
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