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In a tense moment aboard the International Space Station (ISS), NASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore were forced to take emergency shelter in Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft and other return vehicles. The emergency response management protocol was initiated as space debris threatened the orbiting laboratory on Wednesday.
A defunct Russian satellite, RESURS-P1, broke into over 100 pieces at an altitude near the station, causing astronauts on the ISS to take shelter. No reason has been attributed to the breakup of the Russian Earth observation satellite, which was declared dead in 2022 by Russia.
As a standard precautionary measure at ISS, Mission Control instructed all crew members to seek shelter in their respective spacecraft. Williams and Wilmore, who have been aboard the ISS since June 5, took refuge in the Starliner capsule. For approximately an hour, Mission Control closely monitored the path of the debris while the astronauts remained in their protective shelters.
After determining that the immediate threat had passed, the crew was given the all-clear to exit their spacecraft and resume normal operations on the station.
