U.S., Russian satellites collide, creating massive debris clouds

U.S., Russian satellites collide? nearly all airplanes are fitted with system's to avoid collision, So if debris 4 inches in size, that are being tracked by the U.S. Space Surveillance Network be tracked, How come to Satellites that are not debris not be tracked to avoid a collision. If there is no system that could detect and avoid a collision even in different orbits there would be total chaos up there, would there not?? Are we saying that air traffic control is far more sophisticated here on earth than is up in space? Are Satellites not insured if there was no safe system to ditect each other, satellites would never leave the ground. So I am going out to by a helmet! ! collision give me a break

Collided...yeah right!

"As for pieces the size of micrometers, the count will likely be in the thousands, he added ..."

I have two micrometers; they are very useful tools.

It's Russia's fault.

"Something like this was innevitable" says NASA. Yeah, because there's not much space in... space?

NASA believes any risk to the space station and its three astronauts is low. It orbits about 435 kilometers below the collision course. There also should be no danger to the space shuttle set to launch with seven astronauts on Feb 22, officials said, but that will be re-evaluated in the coming days.

Nasa has been wrong before

ohhh man!!! What's next, planes colliding with planes? earth colliding on the moon?

What was the Russian satellite doing?

It's Russia's fault.

Ya, and what is communication satellite douig over Siberia?

Ya, and what is communication satellite douig over Siberia?

Well you know, they have to gather data on some one!!! I mean they have to use does things on something!! hahahah

I blame both of them, I bet they both did it on purpose to see who chickens out from the collision... and they probably did some betting too....

NASA believes any risk to the space station and its three astronauts is low.

That's what they thought about the satallites colliding. < :-)

Worlds' first satellite traffic accident sounds funny and scary! US Department of Transportation and Russian Ministerstvo Transporta need to settle the case effective immediately. They each gor over thousand sats most of them flying as a space souvenier.

The statistical odds of this a collision event between satellites is so small, it's almost zero.

They were made for each other.

Any other explantion is simply a wild-eyed conspiracy theory. :-)

The US satellite was commercial.... ah, so the Russian one was...erm, dare we ask??? Didn't a Russian nuclear-powered satellite fall back to earth some time back? This one weighs a ton, it says. I wonder what was powering it before it started this out-of-control orbit and eventual collision?

"We knew this was going to happen eventually" - Mark Matney, an orbital debris scientist at Johnson Space Center

So, they don't have the technology to keep satellites from　crashing into each other. Gosh, I hope they don't say that when two shuttles with people aboard crash into each other.

"orbital debris scientist"

I hope eventually they can phase out that job.

probably the phrase "the Russian satellite was nonfunctioning and out of control" should be read carefully

"orbital debris scientist"

Sarge - "I hope eventually they can phase out that job."

LOL! :-)

There are now about 17,000 mammade debris arbiting the earth. I don't know how many satellites are flying up there as some countries send new ones up every year. I think that satellite and another sateliite or satellite and small debris collide more often in the future whatever scientists deny about it.

Russia has taken responsibility in the following way, quoted from the BBC World Service site:

'Russia's civilian space agency, Roscosmos, confirmed the collision with the defunct 950kg (2,094lb) satellite, which was launched in 1993. Spokesman Aleksandr Vorobyev was quoted as saying the satellite had "in all likelihood... belonged in the past to the military", and was therefore not the responsibility of Roscosmos.'

Next come the aliens....mark my words.

It has more than 300,000 subscribers. The U.S. Department of Defense is one of its largest customers.

At the beginning of this year there were roughly 17,000 pieces of manmade debris orbiting Earth, Johnson said

I think there is a greater chance of their subscribers bumping into each actually......given that the earth surface is much smaller than space, no?

Pretty soon the debris cloud will be so large that we won't be able to get past it. Just think about it: humanity is stopped from reaching for the stars by it's own trash. Ironic, isn't it?

Aliens might provide some humanatarian aid to earthlings for cleaining up their orbit hence they can escape from their polluted planet.

OMG can we human be good at anything ? We "civilise" the earth for our better living conditions and in the end we produce so many toxic wastes around which can exterminate all of us finally. We "escape" from the earth to explore the universe then produce again accumulated wastes surround the planet which in the end prevent us from going anywhere.

First impression is the most important. Space aliens must think earthlings are all litter bugs.

Well, no-one seemed bothered about the possibility of nuclear radiation falling on our heads, so I did a bit of digging around. The Russian satellite may be carrying radio isotopes, I discovered.

Further:

"A space expert told Interfax in Moscow that the debris could collide with old Soviet spy satellites carrying radioactive batteries. There was the danger that radioactive clouds could be discharged into space, the expert said." http://news.smashits.com/349818/US-and-Russian-satellites-collide-in-space.htm

Take all reports with a pinch of salt, and keep an open mind!

STAR WARS! :D

Geez! We already have a problem with littering our planet, now we have to litter in space as well! :(