Japanese Cargo Craft Falls to Earth After Failed Space-Junk Experiment

space.com ^ | 02/06/2017 | Hanneke Weitering

[BenLurkin]

The spacecraft, named HTV-6, arrived at the space station in December filled with 5 tons of food, water, clothes, science experiments and other gear. It intentionally burned up in Earth's atmosphere at 10:06 a.m. EST on Sunday (12:06 a.m. Japan StandardTime), according to the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. The HTV-6 spent 45 days docked at the station's Harmony module while Expedition 50 crewmembers unloaded the cargo and filled the empty space with nonrecyclable trash

After departing from the space station on Jan. 27, HTV-6 spent a week orbiting the Earth 12 miles (19 kilometers) below and 23 miles (37 km) ahead of the ISS to keep a safe distance while testing out a new technology for removing space junk, or orbital debris, from Earth's orbit.

The Kounotori Integrated Tether Experiment (KITE) flunked its first orbital test when a glitch prevented it from properly deploying a 700-meter-long (2,300 feet) electrodynamic tether made to grab pieces of space junk, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) reported Tuesday (Jan. 31).

[Boogieman]

“filled with 5 tons of food, water, clothes, science experiments and other gear”

Really, what do they need clothes for in space? There’s no public nudity laws up there. Save the precious cargo space and let em go commando!

[T-Bone Texan]

They need clean underwear.

What if there was some kind of accident?

[BlueDragon]

Another opportunity for the one word reply;

Depends

[BenLurkin]

But then the poor astronauts would have their space junk floating in each other’s faces.

[Boogieman]

(Sshhhh you’re ruining my plan to see boobies in zero-g!)

[ObozoMustGo2012]

[But then the poor astronauts would have their space junk floating in each other’s faces.]

I bet zero-g’s makes it look bigger!!

[Calvin Locke]

What if there was some kind of accident?

There's a book, "Too Far From Home", that chronicles the ISS crew at the time of the SST Columbia disaster.

I think it has a section on one guy washing his favorite pair of gym shorts, only to some sort of dining mishap obviate all his work - micro-g hand-washing requires both technique and effort.

[BenLurkin]

Mission 004 Teen News Conf: Sex in Space?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3BFzepWiUwU

[Boogieman]

Hearing about it ain’t the same as seeing it :P

[logi_cal869]

You really wanna be picking curly hairs out of your teeth & nose?

[21twelve]

“The HTV-6 spent 45 days docked ...while...crewmembers unloaded the cargo and filled the empty space with nonrecyclable trash.”

I guess Japan has government union workers too.

[Boogieman]

Hey, I’m not going up there, let the astronauts worry about that.