The ISS’s Dangerous Fall: A Global Threat?
When the 400-tonne International Space Station, the size of a football field, falls towards Earth at 6km/s—–
Bringing the International Space Station, the size of a football field and weighing more than 200 elephants, from orbit back into Earth’s atmosphere, maybe a formidable challenge, but is there another possible future for the space station?
In the next eight years, if this huge space station goes astray and falls towards the wrong part of the Pacific Ocean, the people of Earth can face a lot of trouble.
When the 400-ton metal structure enters the earth’s atmosphere by tearing the sky, the metal pieces will be reddened by the friction of the air. These flaming fragments will hit the surface of the ocean and this rain of burning embers may fall over thousands of kilometers of sea, thus ending one of the greatest human projects.
A Colossal Achievement in Space Exploration
Something genuinely spectacular happened in the year 1998. It was the start of the International Space Station’s (ISS) adventure into the vast and boundless domain of outer space. The ISS, a massive construction, began its trip, marking a watershed event in human exploration.
Since then, this magnificent structure has orbited our planet faithfully, never deviating from its original course. It continues to circle the Earth indefinitely with no change in its route. The first crew of this space station arrived there in November 2000. Since then, more than 250 astronauts from 20 countries have taken up residence there.
The head of the European Space Agency (ESA), Joseph Ash-Basher, says that this space station is our greatest achievement.
The European Space Agency is one of 12 global partners. The former head of the American space research organization, “NASA” Thomas Zerbo Shan, says that “ISS is undoubtedly one of the most important achievements of the great international achievements”. They were installed decades ago and have now reached their natural age.
The Growing Risks of an Aging Space Station
The space station has become dangerous because of these obsolete mechanical devices And in orbit, it can be difficult to control. The International Space Station may also face the same dangerous conditions as the Soviet Union’s space station “Salute 7” was captured and two Russian cosmonauts risked their lives to make the decommissioned space station operational again. was endangered.
“We strive to prevent the recurrence of such incidents,” stated Kathy Lewis, an esteemed space historian affiliated with the National Air and Space Museum in the United States.
Forecasts indicate that by 2031, a momentous endeavor will be undertaken to extract the International Space Station (ISS) from its orbit and guide it safely into the Earth’s atmosphere, eventually facilitating its controlled landing within the vast expanse of the Pacific Ocean.
Planning the ISS’s Final Journey
NASA, in pursuit of this ambitious task, sought financial support from the US Congress in March of last year to initiate the preparatory stages of the groundbreaking “Space Tug” project. The proposed initiative involves the launch of a spacecraft dedicated to propelling the space station into the Earth’s atmosphere.
Cathy Lawders, the head of NASA’s Human Space Flight Program, disclosed that the estimated cost of the mission to tug the space station into Earth’s atmosphere amounts to an impressive $1 billion.
Undoubtedly, dislodging the International Space Station from its Earthly orbit presents an immense and intricate challenge. Historical records reveal the unfortunate fate of various sizable objects that previously re-entered the Earth’s atmosphere, with both the Russian Mir space station in 2001 and NASA’s Skylab space station in 1979 succumbing to the fiery forces of incineration.”
But the problem of “ISS” is very serious. It is more than three times larger than the Mir space station. Astronomer Jonathan McDowell of the Harvard-Smith Union Center for Astrophysics in the US says, “This is a very difficult challenge. It is not unusual for something weighing 400 tons to fall from the sky to the Earth.
The construction of the International Space Station began in 1998 with the Russian-made “Zaria Module”. That is, this was the initial part of the space station, but today this space station has become very big with 16 modules attached to it.
Outside the space station, large solar panels are mounted on metal hinges and radiators are installed to dissipate heat. It is the largest structure mankind has ever erected in space, measuring 356 feet long. In the space station, there are always seven astronauts at a time, working together for a specific duration.
Every few days, like clockwork, a brand-new team of astronauts eagerly steps in to replace the previous crew, bidding farewell to their home among the stars and embarking on a remarkable journey back to Earth.
This perpetual cycle ensures that there is always a dedicated group of space explorers residing on the celestial outpost, ready to continue humanity’s quest for knowledge and discovery in the vastness of space.
This process is repeated indefinitely, generating a cycle of personnel changes. It’s incredible to consider the ISS’s speed around the Earth, a mind-boggling 27,570 kilometers per hour. Consider this for a moment.
Consider yourself aboard the International Space Station (ISS) as it soars through the universe. Something genuinely extraordinary occurs for the crew members on board as the ISS pursues its course in orbit around the Earth.
They are fortunate to watch not just one sunrise and sunset, but a whopping 16 of these stunning natural events in a single day. This is due to the station’s continual movement and faster day-night cycle. The ISS completes one full circuit around the Earth in about 90 minutes. The structure of the station varies slightly with each cycle due to temperature differences over its surface.
The Legacy of the ISS
The life of the ISS has been extended several times, but it is now widely agreed that extending its life beyond 2030 could be dangerous. According to NASA, other alternative projects in this regard, such as getting it into a higher orbit, were also considered, but this could not be considered feasible as it would require dozens of spacecraft to reach a safe altitude.
Last year, NASA put forth an alternative proposal, suggesting a different course of action: intentionally guiding the space station toward Earth’s atmosphere.
Commencing in 2026, the project entails allowing the International Space Station (ISS) to gradually decelerate within the grasp of atmospheric gravity. During this juncture, the ultimate crew will be dispatched to the orbiting station, ensuring its outfitted state with instruments and invaluable historical data. Important things have not been removed.
Removing these objects will also reduce the weight of the space station. When the last crew departs the space station, the ISS altitude will drop to another 280 km. This is the “Point of Nocturn” from where the Russian Progress spacecraft will be used to launch the space station into the Earth’s atmosphere.
People around the world watched as Russia’s Mir space station reentered the Earth’s atmosphere and its burning pieces fell towards Earth. The International Space Station is a massive construction that dwarfs the Mir space station, which barely weighed 140 tons.
Consider the International Orbit Station (ISS) to be a huge building in orbit. It’s three times bigger than the Mir space station.
The ISS is comparable in size to three Mirs combined. A 400-tonne blazing piece falling from the upper atmosphere toward Earth at breakneck speed, according to McDowell, would be a truly unforgettable sight. If everything goes as planned, this blazing debris should pose little threat to human life.
The Spectacle and Risks of Re-Entry
After entering the Earth’s atmosphere and burning up with wind friction, the fragments of the ISS should end up in the atmosphere, but if a large fragment survives reaching the Earth, scientists will try to ‘ “Point Nemo” should be taken out to sea.
These fragments falling on Earth’s surface can be dangerous to the human population, so efforts are made to land debris from space where there is minimal risk of harm to people or property. Even if the debris “re-entry” is done in a very controlled manner, chunks of debris can fall hundreds, if not thousands, of km.
SPOUA: A Safe Dumping Ground
Debris from the International Space Station travels a long distance of up to 6,000 kilometers. This means that the debris will very certainly end up in the South China Sea.
To protect everyone’s safety, the debris will be disposed of in a unique location known as the Pacific Ocean Uninhabited Area (SPOUA), sometimes known as the “Spacecraft Graveyard.” This place lies halfway between New Zealand and South America in the enormous Pacific Ocean.
The SPOUA serves as a designated dumping ground for space trash on Earth. It is the world’s largest uninhabited land, making it suitable for dumping space junk without causing too much damage. Many obsolete satellites and space debris, including the Russian space station Mir, were dropped in this area back in 2001.
The busy activity of boats, ships, and aircraft in the Pacific Ocean must come to a halt to ensure the safety of both people and expensive equipment. This temporary pause is necessary to avoid any potential accidents or damage. However, if one gets the chance, the scenes of the last moments of the ISS can be seen.
If I were at NASA, I would use cameras and sensors to visualize the final moments of the space station in detail, and in modern science, this is also feasible. From the initial shattering of the solar panels to the sinking of the wreckage into “Point Nemo, “it would take just 40 minutes and the entire scene could be filmed.”
Read More About International Space Station:
A Space Station Falling Out of Control in the Past
After completing the 981st cycle, it began to show signs of malfunction, after which it was powered down before the ground control station and then allowed to enter the earth’s atmosphere in an uncontrolled manner on 11 July 1979.
Skylab was expected to crash over the southern tip of the African continent and its debris would fall into the Indian Ocean, but most of the wreckage fell into the ocean, but some broken pieces fell about 1,000 miles off southwestern Australia. They also fell in an area 200 km long and 200 km wide where the human population was very far away.
On February 7, 1991, after spending 9 years in orbit, the Soviet Union’s space station “Salute 7” entered the Earth’s atmosphere in an uncontrolled manner, heading towards a mountain area in Argentina. The Russian space station was also expected to remain in orbit until 1994, but the intense solar radiation from the Sun.