Alejandro Otero, whose home was hit in March by a piece that fell from the International Space Station (ISS), has decided that he will file a lawsuit and ask NASA for compensation.
While confirming that the cylindrical object is actually a piece of metal that was ejected from the space station, Otero and his lawyer, Mika Nguyen Worthy, told… IFLScience Who plan to start a broader conversation about the problem of space debris.
The idea is to argue in court the responsibilities of space agencies and private space companies when it comes to properly disposing of materials in orbit.
NASA confirms that the part is from the International Space Station
This episode came to light last month. Alejandro Otero, who lives in the damaged house, said that upon returning from his trip, he discovered a large hole in the ceiling and floor. In fact, Otero's son was home at the time of the fall. Despite the panic and damage to property located in Florida, USA, no one was hurt.
The object hit the object last March, but NASA intentionally ejected it from the International Space Station in 2021. At the time, the space agency used the station's robotic arm to jettison a payload containing old nickel hydride batteries into orbit. Waste has been eliminated by upgrading the plant's power systems, replacing old systems with new lithium-ion batteries.
NASA says that the International Space Station's discarded payload has a total weight of 2.6 tons, and it was expected to completely burn up upon entering the Earth's atmosphere. However, on March 8 of this year, a piece – part of this space junk – fell on a house in Florida.
The International Space Station piece weighs 700 grams, is 10 centimeters high, and 4 centimeters in diameter. It is made of an Inconel metal alloy and was part of the old battery system on the International Space Station. After confirming the object's origin, NASA committed to investigating how the part resisted complete destruction in the atmosphere.
Space waste problem
According to a study published in the scientific journal Nature astronomyThere are 651 pieces of space junk at risk of getting out of control within the next 10 years.
In total, there are more than 27,000 pieces of space debris in orbit – the result of more than 66 years of space exploration.
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