The seven astronauts of the International Space Station (ISS) were forced to interrupt their work and seek refuge in capsules from the threat posed by passing relatively close dangerous fragments of space debris.
The government chaired by Joe Biden suspects that the debris comes from a relevant anti-missile weapons test carried out this weekend by Russia, as explained by two federal officials to the CNN television network.
The International Space Station, in an image taken on November 8, 2021 from the SpaceX DragonNASA capsule via AP
Space Command reported that an unusual and potentially dangerous "debris-generating event" had indeed occurred, but did not mention Russia.
"We are actively working to characterize the debris field and will continue to ensure that all nations navigating in space have
the information necessary to maneuver the satellites if they are hit
," a spokesman said.
"We are working with other agencies, including the State Department and NASA, regarding these reports and will provide an update in the near future," he said.
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If confirmed, the incident would further raise the tension between the United States and Russia, mainly due to Russian movements in Eastern Europe that have not pleased the Biden government.
The crew aboard the ISS had
to quickly don their spacesuits and shelter in capsules
, as a precaution in case the station was hit by debris, explained the Russian space agency, ROSCOSMOS.
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Those responsible for the space mission indicated that
this threat could last a couple of days
and continue to interrupt scientific research and other work of the astronauts.
Four of the seven crew members arrived at the orbital post Thursday night.
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NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei, who is in the middle of a year-long mission, called the incident "
a crazy but well-coordinated day
."
"It has been a great way to bond as a crew, starting with our first day of work in space," he stressed.
"Friends, everything is fine with us!" Said Russian astronaut Anton Shkaplerov.
With information from
The Associated Press