The head of NASA Tuesday branded India’s destruction of one of its satellites a “terrible thing” that had created 400 pieces of orbital debris and led to new dangers for astronauts aboard the International Space Station. Watch: ‘India now a space power’: PM lauds successful anti-satellite missile testBut 24 of the pieces “are going above the apogee of the International Space Station,” said Bridenstine. That includes about 10,000 pieces of space debris, of which nearly 3,000 were created by a single event: a Chinese anti-satellite test in 2007 at 530 miles from the surface. As a result of the Indian test, the risk of collision with the ISS has increased by 44 percent over 10 days, Bridenstine said. But the risk will dissipate over time as much of the debris will burn up as it enters the atmosphere.

Source: Hindustan Times April 02, 2019 02:15 UTC