Incoming Meteor Storm Could Bombard Space Station/Hubble Next Year

This is a very interesting story here folks. Next October the Space Station and/or hubble could be at risk of a severe Sand Blasting that could render them useless.

Astronomers believe the seven-hour bombardment from the comet debris, due later next year, could strike orbiting spacecraft and wreck their electronics

Nasa said the storm, which crosses the Earth's orbit around the sun every October, comes from a meteor shower called the Draconids

Nasa scientists admitted this week they were unclear how serious the storm will be, but spacecraft operators were already being notified to develop defensive mechanisms

As a result, Nasa is currently investigating reorienting the international space station and Hubble space telescope to ensure vulnerable areas are turned away from the incoming sandblast

Spacewalks could also be banned until the threat from the river of rock particles has passed

Apart from the physical danger from a direct strike, electrostatic discharges can fry their vital electronics

Scary stuff, I notice the article says nothing about a possible evacuation of the space station. I would not want to be there during this!

Also, I wonder if anyone knows why they say Satellites Etc will weather the storm? Are they much different?

But satellites, including those providing vital services such as communications, satnav and television, will weather the storm

Dr William Cooke, from the Meteoroid Environment Office at Nasa’s Marshall Space Flight Centre in Alabama, said contingency plans were already being developed to avoid problems when the storm is expected to hit

His computer predictions concluded that several hundred meteors an hour could be visible from the earth on October 8 next year

www.telegraph.co.uk...

reply to post by grantbeed


I read the story also. Wonder why this years is expected to be so threating? Should make for an interesting view, except for the threat to astronauts and orbiting ships.

reply to post by JMech

Most years rates are fairly low, but can dramatically increase about every 13 years as the Earth travels through the densest part of the stream of particles

Maybe next year is due to be a peak year ?

g

reply to post by grantbeed


Thanks, did'nt see the next year part on the story I read or your post. Has been a long day. I hope NASA is wrong on this one!

reply to post by JMech


No worries. Here's some information about this meteor shower -

meteorshowersonline.com...

I'm in the southern Hemisphere, dam, wont see much from here....

g

I wish the article would have told me what kind of damage (if any) occurred to orbiting satellites last time the Draconids peaked in 1998. Plus, the Mir space station was in orbit at that time.

Did they take any action at that time to minimize the risk to Mir and other satellites?



[edit on 6/18/2010 by Soylent Green Is People]

reply to post by Soylent Green Is People


Not sure about the Draconids, but they did take similar precautions against the Leonids that year:

November 12, 1998

The Russian space station Mir will be turned so that the smallest surface possible is exposed to the threat of the Leonid meteor storm. To be safe, however, the two cosmonauts will board the Soyuz escape capsule when the shower reaches its peak.

www.xs4all.nl...

I wouldn't be surprised if they had done that for the draconid storm as well.

Anyone know why it would not affect Satellites, but will affect Hubble and MIR?

g

I just read this article in Dutch (De Morgen, quality MSM) which states Nasa expects 'the most powerful meteor storm (sic) in more than a decennium', later on this year. It's expected to last about seven hours, with spectacular visuals. The storm will be part of the Draconid meteor shower.

Orders are given to build in defense mechanisms and they look into the possibility to turn the ISS so the side with vulnerable parts points away from the impact direction.
Other satellites and equipment will have to endure it, so there's a risk of direct impact. The meteor storm could also cause vital electronic disruptions due to static discharge. All spacewalks will be cancelled that period.

Sounds like a fascinating astronomic happening.
I can't find this on NASA, is there more news on this?


Edit: ah, apparently the same content as the Thelegraph article - except for the this year/next year detail. Should have read that one first, sorry.


[edit on 18/6/10 by Movhisattva]

reply to post by Movhisattva


Are you sure it's "this year" and not next year ?

Thanks for the info.

g

reply to post by grantbeed


The Dutch article says this year, the English next year. I'll rather believe the original English version. Probably translation error.

reply to post by ngchunter


Thanks ngchunter.

Hubble was in orbit the last time Draconids peaked in 1998 and, like the Mir space station, it obviously survived.

I'm sure it's possible that the Draconids peaking next year has the potential to cause some problems, but I wonder how high that risk actually is, seeing that a shower of this purported magnitude happened in 1998 and our satellites survived. Like I said before, this article isn't really telling me much in the way of specifics.

[edit on 6/19/2010 by Soylent Green Is People]

reply to post by Soylent Green Is People


Here's some more details on this story -

Current meteor forecast models project a strong Draconid outburst, possibly a full-blown storm, on Oct. 8, 2011, according to William Cooke of the Meteoroid Environment Office at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala

while no spacecraft electrical problems were reported during the strong Draconid outbursts of 1985 and 1998, he said that the lack of past anomalies should not be taken as carte blanche for satellite operators to ignore in 2011

Seems like the Telegraph story was hyping things up as it says here -

"I have no concerns about the space station. Even if the Draconids were a full-scale meteor storm I would be confident that the space station program would take the right steps to mitigate the risk," Cooke said

Even still, i'm sure there will be certain precautions taken during this event in Oct 2011.

Time shall tell.

g

www.space.com...

reply to post by grantbeed


Oh -- I agree that the danger still exists even though our satellites survived past Draconids peaks in 1998 and 1985. -- e.g., Just because I successfully drove home without having an accident doesn't mean I should not wear my seat belt next time I drive.

Originally posted by grantbeed
...Seems like the Telegraph story was hyping things up as it says here -

"I have no concerns about the space station. Even if the Draconids were a full-scale meteor storm I would be confident that the space station program would take the right steps to mitigate the risk," Cooke said

Yeah -- this story in the OP and an earlier story by the same writer (Andrew Hough) regarding potential solar storm damage in 2013 BOTH seemed to be a bit sensationalistic -- as if the author was trying to sell more papers or get more web page hits.

I like my science to be a bit more factual rather than be full of potentially exaggerated "what if" scenarios. In both stories (this one and the solar storm one), I would have preferred if Mr. Hough just tells us the actual chances that these space phenomena could have a major adverse effect on our world rather than solely writing about the worst-case scenarios.

...but, I suppose hype sells.

[edit on 6/20/2010 by Soylent Green Is People]