For several hours, a massive cloud of debris has threatened the astronauts present in the ISS, the International Space Station. The US military said Monday to investigate this "event that generated debris" in space and forced the astronauts currently in the International Space Station to take refuge in their ships in order to be able to evacuate if necessary. “The US Space Command is aware of an event that generated debris in space. We are actively working to characterize the debris field, ”said a spokesperson, who also indicated that the military was in contact with the State Department and NASA on this matter.
Some American space specialists suspect that an anti-satellite missile test conducted by Russia is the source of this debris, this information has not been confirmed for the moment.
🚨ALERT🚨Since 12 hours today, the # ISS has encountered a significant cloud of debris.
All the modules of the ISS are closed and the crew is in the capsules moored for safety.
#SpaceX's Crew Dragon ship has damage.
#NASA
- Supernovæ Space 🚀 (@SupernovaeSpace) November 15, 2021
Such an action, which would constitute a show of force from Moscow, has been carried out by only four nations in the past, including Russia.
It is highly criticized, in particular because of the large amount of debris generated, which then becomes dangerous projectiles.
Earlier, the Russian space agency Roscosmos had declared the astronauts aboard the ISS out of danger, without mentioning a possible missile test.
"The object's orbit, which forced the crew today to travel to the spacecraft using standard procedures, has moved away from the orbit of the ISS," Roscosmos tweeted.
“The resort is now in the green.
"
The @Space_Station crew is routinely performing operations according to the flight program.
The orbit of the object, which forced the crew today to move into spacecraft according to standard procedures, has moved away from the ISS orbit.
The station is in the green zone.
pic.twitter.com/MVHVACSpmT
- РОСКОСМОС (@roscosmos) November 15, 2021
“Friends, everything is in order with us.
We are continuing the work according to our program, ”Russian cosmonaut Anton Shkaplerov also tweeted.
Contacted, NASA did not immediately respond to AFP's requests.
Seven people are currently on the International Space Station.
According to the specialized media Spaceflight Now, NASA astronauts Raja Chari, Kayla Barron and Tom Marshburn, as well as European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Matthias Maurer, took refuge aboard SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft, on board which they arrived only a few days ago.
To read also Debris pollution in space: "The rules are very badly respected"
The American astronaut Mark Vande Hei and the two Russian cosmonauts Anton Shkaplerov and Pyotr Dubrovnik went to the Soyuz spacecraft, from the same source.
This procedure should allow them to leave the Space Station to Earth in an emergency.
