About Human Spaceflight
Human spaceflight is space travel with a crew or passengers aboard the spacecraft. Spacecraft carrying people may be operated directly, by human crew, or it may be either remotely operated from ground stations on Earth or be autonomous, able to carry out a specific mission with no human involvement.
Buzz Aldrin marries for the fourth time, aged 93
... In 2018 he founded a non-profit think tank, the Human Spaceflight Institute...
Tim Peake retires from European astronaut corps
... " By assuming the role of an ambassador for Human Spaceflight, I shall continue to support Esa and the UK Space Agency, with a focus on educational outreach, and I look forward to the many exciting opportunities ahead...
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... " If the Russians haven t figured out an alternative by the time the ISS is decommissioned or develops its own space station, which given the current circumstances and sanctions is quite unlikely, it might not have any Human Spaceflight, " she says...
Nasa's Artemis Moon rocket lifts off Earth
... " And there ll be some critical manoeuvres from our service module, too, as we fine tune the direction of flight of Orion, " Dr David Parker, the European Space Agency s director of Human Spaceflight, told BBC News...
Samantha Cristoforetti: The astronaut taking TikTok to new heights
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The companies offering delivery to the Moon
... " In 2000, the idea was, we would finish the space station in just a matter of years, and then the next big Human Spaceflight project would be to move on to Mars, " he says...
Nasa unveils new class of astronaut candidates
... Nasa astronaut Reid Wiseman said: " We are in the golden age of Human Spaceflight...
US anger at Russian anti-satellite missile test debris
... " This test will significantly increase the risk to astronauts and cosmonauts on the International Space Station, as well as to other Human Spaceflight activities, " he said...
US anger at Russian anti-satellite missile test debris
The US has condemned Russia for conducting a " dangerous and irresponsible" missile test that it says endangered The Crew aboard The International Space Station (ISS).
The Test blew up one of Russia's own satellites, creating debris that forced the ISS crew to shelter in capsules.
The Station currently has seven crew members on board - Four Americans, a German and two Russians.
The space station orbits at an altitude of about 420km (260 miles).
" Earlier today, The Russian Federation recklessly conducted a destructive satellite test of a direct ascent anti-satellite missile against one of its own satellites, " US state department spokesman Ned Price said at a briefing.
" The Test has So Far generated over 1,500 pieces of trackable orbital debris and hundreds of thousands of pieces of smaller orbital debris that now threaten the interests of all nations. "
Russian Space Agency Roscosmos downplayed The Incident .
" 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 , "
The wayward material passed by without incident, But its origin is now under the spotlight.
It appears to have come from a broken-up Russian satellite, Kosmos-1408. A spy satellite launched in 1982, it weighed over a tonne and had ceased working many years ago.
LeoLabs, a space debris-tracking company, said its radar facility in New Zealand had picked up multiple objects where the long-defunct spacecraft should have been.
But Mr Price said the danger was far from over.
" This test will significantly increase The Risk to astronauts and cosmonauts on The International Space Station, as well as to other Human Spaceflight activities, " He Said .
" Russia's dangerous and irresponsible behaviour jeopardises the long-term sustainability of Outer Space and clearly demonstrate that Russia's claims of opposing weaponisation of space are disingenuous and hypocritical.
" The US will work with our partners and allies to respond to their irresponsible act. "
It's difficult not to view anti-satellite missile tests as a form of madness.
It's impossible to control the debris field that results from a high-velocity impact. Thousands of fragments are produced. Some will be propelled downwards towards Earth and out of harm's way, But many will also head to higher altitudes where they will harass operational missions for years into The Future - including those of The Nation state that carried out The Test .
What must The Russian cosmonauts on the space station have been thinking when they took shelter in their Soyuz capsule early on Monday because of The Risk debris from this test might intersect with their orbital home?
Space junk is a rapidly worsening situation. Sixty-Four years of activity above our heads means there are now roughly A Million objects running around Up There uncontrolled in the size range of 1cm (0. 4in) to 10cm.
An impact from any one of these could be mission-ending for a vital weather or telecommunications satellite. Nations need to be clearing up the space environment, not polluting it still further.
A Number of countries have The Ability to Take Out satellites from the ground, including the US, Russia, China and India.
Testing of such missiles is rare, But Always draws widespread condemnation whenever it occurs, because it pollutes the space environment for everyone.
When China destroyed one of its retired weather satellites in 2007, it created More Than 2,000 pieces of trackable debris. This material posed an ongoing hazard to operational space missions, not least those of China itself.
Brian Weeden, an expert in space situational awareness, earlier said that if it was confirmed Russia had conducted a test that endangered the ISS, the conduct would have been " beyond irresponsible".
This video can not be played
To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. Media caption, Watch: Astronauts return to Earth on SpaceX capsule (10 November 2021 report)The space station occupies an orbital shell that other operators try to keep clear of hardware, either working or retired.
However, The Astronauts are increasingly having to take precautionary measures when fragments from old satellites and rockets come uncomfortably close.
The velocities at which this material moves means it could easily puncture The Walls of The Station 's modules.
Precautionary measures usually involve closing hatches between the modules, and, as happened on Monday, climbing into the capsules that took The Astronauts up to The Station . These vehicles stay attached to the ISS throughout the crews' tours of duty in case there is a need for a rapid " lifeboat" Escape .
Source of news: bbc.com