Space station, maneuver to avoid debris

Astronauts on the International Space Station performed a maneuver to avoid being hit by a flurry of space debris.

NASA reported this, urging better management of objects in Earth's orbit.

The control centers of the Russian and US Space Station worked together during a two-and-a-half minute operation aimed at regulating the station's orbit and moving away, avoiding the collision.

The debris passed about 1.4 kilometers from the Space Station, NASA said. The three crew members - two Russians and one American - moved close to the Russian Soyuz shuttle at the start of the maneuver so they could evacuate if necessary, the US Space Agency added, adding that the maneuver has been decided. " for precautionary purposes ". Once this was over, the astronauts returned to their normal activities.

The menacing wreck was a piece of a 2018 Japanese rocket, astronomer Jonathan McDowell wrote on Twitter. The rocket broke into 77 pieces last year. The Space Station usually orbits 420 kilometers high at a speed of about 27,000 kilometers per hour, and at such speed even a small object could cause serious damage.