Posted on 11/06/2025 11:00:13 AM PST by Red Badger
Looks like china is getting its own Apollo 13 mission...
The Daily Mail has the details:
Three astronauts already in space for six months are now stranded in orbit after their craft may have been damaged by dangerous debris floating around Earth.
China's Manned Spaceflight Agency (CMSA) has revealed that crew from its Shenzhou 20 mission will need to stay on board the Chinese station Tiangong.
The team of astronauts scheduled to relieve the first group had already taken off and were on their way to swap out with them, but the astronauts aboard the space station discovered a potentially serious problem.
Astronauts Chen Dong, Chen Zhongrui, and Wang Jie have been on Tiangong, which means Heavenly Palace, since April, completing science experiments, carrying out space walks, and living in zero gravity.
At some point before the trio officially handed over the station to the Shenzhou 21 crew on November 5, the capsule the astronauts were supposed to use to return to Earth was struck by an unknown object in Earth orbit.
The collision left a noticeable mark on the space vehicle's hull, leading the team to fear Shenzhou 20 may have also sustained internal damage that could endanger their flight home.
The crews will have to conduct an extensive inspection to determine whether the craft can be safely operated for a return trip home.
Though it's not known what exactly it was that struck the spacecraft, it could be any of the estimated 19,000 pieces of "space debris" or the 11,000-plus other still-operational satellites in orbit around the earth, which travel at average speeds of 17,000mph.
If Supreme Leader Xi needs some help getting his boys home, I know a guy!
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Work very fine, last long time!......................
Surprised by that.
Only China uses their space station so why does their post have o be compatible with ISS ports?
Common sense. If you want to make a commercial venture there you have to have parking spaces.............
Plus, these designs were made long ago, so why re-invent the wheel...............
I always thought it was funny that in all those Star Wars movies that they would fly around through the cosmos and never hit any space rocks. I ain’t goin’ to Alpha Centauri until they develop something like on the fronts of trains for cattle.
The debris could have been anything, but wouldn't be a surprise if it's a Chinese source.
One novel I read long ago they used a huge block of ice!............
Big chunk of Blue Ice..................
They probably developed their own docking mechanism that is incompatible with anyone else’s. Sounds like they may wind up okay, and I’m sure they can be kept supplied until an empty crew vehicle can auto-dock with the station.
I guess there is no friction in space so I’ll buy that.
Prayers 🙏🙏🙏 for their safe return to Earth 🌍🌎🌏
It would be ironic if the debris was from that satellite that they blew up with a missile.
A little buffing will get that right out.
Oddly, the Russians, who helped in the development of our "International Docking Standard" docking tech, don't actually use it. They use their own system, which -- again oddly -- is closer to what we used on the Apollo program than it is to the "international standard" docking mechanism we use now.
yup that V^2 really does it
Good grief. The woman thing again?
Ed White lost a glove in 1965. It’s been going on for decades.
Geesh.
Besides, a bag of metallic tools would have more mass to it and be more likely to make a dent in a space capsule than a glove.
Learn to take a joke.
-PJ
I pray for them too. Highly intelligent and very brave young men in that spaceship are no threat to us.
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