How NASA’s Fermi Telescope Sidestepped a Gigantic Space Crash

There ’s all kinds of asteroids and other rubble cruising through space , but a good deal of the really dangerous clobber is stuff we put there ourselves . NASA’scosmic house of cards - spot Fermi telescopealmost had an intergalactic cowcatcher bender , but not with some epoch - old rock float through the cosmos . No , italmost got oppress by some Cold War - era trash .

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On March 29th 2012 , NASA scientists were alerted that their precious telescope was going to get a close visit from Cosmos 1805 , an outdated spy satellite which has been careening around the Earth since its death tenner ago . While a collision was n’t sure , the potential for one was disastrous ; a 27,000 mph crash with the 3,100 pound hunk - of - junk would have been like the explosion of two and half slews of high explosive . And Fermi cost to build up and deploy $ 200 million buck , so NASA settle it was better to be dependable than sorry .

In a maneuver that really just involve firing Fermi ’s antecedently fresh thrusters for a mere instant , NASA neuter the satellite ’s orbit ever - so - somewhat to avoid the potential tragedy . Though it was a peril that Fermi ’s thruster might be useless afterwards , the legerdemain yield off , leaving the scope safe and sound .

As our little recession of space gets increasingly herd , issues like this are only going to become more and more uncouth , especially as more and more body politic blast artificial satellite into blank and lose control condition of them ( reckon at you , North Korea).The ISS has had to pull of stunts like this too . There are preliminary plansto blast space debris back into the atmosphereso it can burn up on its elbow room down , but for the moment , the most effective scheme is just to keep dipping and dive . It ’s a high - stake zero - g concert dance up there . Hopefully no one have sex up anytime soon . [ NASAviaGizmag ]

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