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China's Tiangong space station damaged by debris strike: report
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By Elizabeth Howell published 22 hours ago
Astronauts repaired the damage during two spacewalks this winter.

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an astronaut in a spacesuit floats outside of a large white cylinder in
space. earth can be seen in the background
Shenzhou 17 astronauts perform a spacewalk to fix solar arrays on the
Tiangong space station on March 1, 2024. (Image credit: CMSA)
China will beef up its space debris procedures for astronauts after a
partial loss of power on its Tiangong space station, according to state
media.

Astronauts on the Shenzhou 17 mission conducted two spacewalks outside
the Tiangong space station this winter, most recently on March 1. At the
time, Chinese media said there had been a partial (but minor) loss of
power supply after the outpost's solar panels suffered a debris strike.

These spacewalks were a success, the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA)
said Wednesday (April 24) in a press conference reported by the
state-run media outlet Xinhua. The agency also plans to do more in the
future to guard against space debris issues in orbit.

"The space station's core module Tianhe had suffered a partial loss of
power supply due to the impact of the space debris on the solar wing's
power cables," Xinhua reported, paraphrasing CMSA deputy director Lin
Xiqiang.

Related: Watch Chinese astronauts fix Tiangong space station solar wing
in 8-hour spacewalk (video)

Xinhua did not specify if the debris was from micrometeoroids or from
human activity in space. Both debris types pose threats to Tiangong as
well as the International Space Station (ISS).

Human-generated orbital debris is growing: the North American Aerospace
Defense Command (NORAD) tracks more than 43,000 overall space objects as
of April 2024, according to SpaceTrack.org. As for active satellites,
there are more than 7,500 as of May 2023, according to the Union for
Concerned Scientists — most of them members of SpaceX's giant Starlink broadband megaconstellation.

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ISS controllers, working with NORAD, have had to move the space station
out of the way of debris more than 30 times since its first modules
launched in 1998. The guidelines are strict, necessitating a maneuver if
any debris arrives in a "pizza box" roughly 2.5 miles by 30 miles by 30
miles (4 by 50 by 50 kilometers) with the ISS at the center, according
to agency officials.

China's space station as well has "executed maneuvers on multiple
occasions to evade space debris impacts", according to the Xinhua
report, and Lin discussed several measures the CMSA is taking to prevent
future issues. (Tiangong's first element, the Tianhe core module,
launched in 2021.)

RELATED STORIES:
—  How often does the International Space Station have to dodge space debris?

 — US space science could fall behind China if private successors to ISS are delayed, Congress warns

 — Watch Chinese astronauts fix Tiangong space station solar wing in
8-hour spacewalk (video)

"China has enhanced its capability to precisely forecast the orbits of
the space station and small low-orbit targets, optimized the procedures
for space collision warning and avoidance, and reduced the false alarm
rate by 30%, according to Lin," Xinhua wrote, without revealing specifics.

Upcoming measures include more video scrutiny of Tiangong using a high-definition camera on its robotic arm and tasking the Shenzhou 18
crew (who are scheduled to launch on Thursday, April 25) to put in more reinforcements. They "will be tasked with installing space debris
protection reinforcements for extravehicular piping, cables and critical equipment during their extravehicular activities," Xinhua reported.

NASA works separately from China in space matters due to a 2011
directive known as the Wolf amendment, which prohibits bilateral
agreements and coordination between NASA and Chinese government entities without express permission from Congress.

Lately, NASA and China have been forming independent coalitions for
lunar exploration: Nearly 40 nations have signed on to NASA's Artemis
Accords, with Sweden, Slovenia and Switzerland all joining in recent
days. China, working with Russia, announced Wednesday three new partners
for its own coalition: Nicaragua, the Asia-Pacific Space Cooperation Organization and the Arab Union for Astronomy and Space Science.

Join our Space Forums to keep talking space on the latest missions,
night sky and more! And if you have a news tip, correction or comment,
let us know at: community@space.com.

Elizabeth Howell
Elizabeth Howell
Staff Writer, Spaceflight
Elizabeth Howell (she/her), Ph.D., is a staff writer in the spaceflight
channel since 2022 covering diversity, education and gaming as well. She
was contributing writer for Space.com for 10 years before joining
full-time. Elizabeth's reporting includes multiple exclusives with the
White House and Office of the Vice-President of the United States, an
exclusive conversation with aspiring space tourist (and NSYNC bassist)
Lance Bass, speaking several times with the International Space Station, witnessing five human spaceflight launches on two continents, flying
parabolic, working inside a spacesuit, and participating in a simulated
Mars mission. Her latest book, "Why Am I Taller?", is co-written with
astronaut Dave Williams. Elizabeth holds a Ph.D. and M.Sc. in Space
Studies from the University of North Dakota, a Bachelor of Journalism
from Canada's Carleton University and a Bachelor of History from
Canada's Athabasca University. Elizabeth is also a post-secondary
instructor in communications and science at several institutions since
2015; her experience includes developing and teaching an astronomy
course at Canada's Algonquin College (with Indigenous content as well)
to more than 1,000 students since 2020. Elizabeth first got interested
in space after watching the movie Apollo 13 in 1996, and still wants to
be an astronaut someday. Mastodon: https://qoto.org/@howellspace

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