A pair of Nasa astronauts accidentally dropped a piece of kit while on a space walk.
Jasmin Moghbeli and Loral O’Hara dropped their toolbox during maintenance work around the International Space Station.
The tool bag, which was around the size of a satchel, floated away and is now orbiting the Earth.
It is currently floating a few minutes ahead of the station.
The satchel started to fly away from the astronauts
Dr Meganne Christian/@astro_meganne
The satchel was captured flying away on camera by the pair’s Japanese colleague Satoshi Furukawa.
Satoshi accidentally photographed the bag disconnecting while taking a shot of Mount Fuji.
The bag’s trajectory was captured on camera and analysed by Mission Control.
It was determined that there was no harm to the onboard crew as the risk of recontacting the station was low.
The International Space Station, as spotted in front of the moon
PA
Nasa officials have now confirmed the tools were not needed for the remainder of the spacewalk.
The bag has now been classified as space junk and is expected to re-enter the Earth’s orbit.
It is expected to burn up and disintegrate on re-entry.
According to astronomy site EarthSky, some people should be able to see it floating around with just a pair of binoculars.
Nasa officials have now confirmed the tools were not needed for the remainder of the spacewalk.
The bag has now been classified as space junk and is expected to re-enter the Earth’s orbit.
It is expected to burn up and disintegrate on re-entry.
According to astronomy site EarthSky, some people should be able to see it floating around with just a pair of binoculars.
The EarthSky website said: “It’s surprisingly bright (for a tool bag), shining just below the limit of visibility to the unaided eye.”
Around 100,000 items of orbital debris are currently believed to be circling the earth.
Nasa has had past issues with toolboxes being lost, with Heide Stefanyshyn-Piper performing a similar repair in 2008 when the same thing happened.
Spacewalker Piers Sellers sheepishly reported that he lost a spatula in 2006 and the first American spacewalker, Ed White, lost a spare glove when he went outside for the first time in 1965.
Dr. Thomas Hughes is a UK-based scientist and science communicator who makes complex topics accessible to readers. His articles explore breakthroughs in various scientific disciplines, from space exploration to cutting-edge research.
