Has any man-made satellite or space vehicle ever been hit by a natural meteoroid?
$begingroup$
For precision I'm excluding artificial meteoroids and satellite debris (which is discussed in another question) of all kinds. I'm also considering collisions large enough to produce a noticeable impact or scar (not truly microscopic dust that can only be detected from wear of the surfaces). Say something carrying at least 1J of kinetic energy.
meteoroid
$endgroup$
add a comment |
$begingroup$
For precision I'm excluding artificial meteoroids and satellite debris (which is discussed in another question) of all kinds. I'm also considering collisions large enough to produce a noticeable impact or scar (not truly microscopic dust that can only be detected from wear of the surfaces). Say something carrying at least 1J of kinetic energy.
meteoroid
$endgroup$
$begingroup$
If a satellite does not respond to radio signals anymore, how should we know what hapened?
$endgroup$
– Uwe
4 hours ago
2
$begingroup$
Possible duplicate of Why haven't more spacecraft/satellites been hit by debris? TL;DR: there's been plenty of macroscopic pitting from impacts.
$endgroup$
– Russell Borogove
4 hours ago
1
$begingroup$
Those answers mostly talk about debris, this question specifically excludes that.
$endgroup$
– Organic Marble
4 hours ago
add a comment |
$begingroup$
For precision I'm excluding artificial meteoroids and satellite debris (which is discussed in another question) of all kinds. I'm also considering collisions large enough to produce a noticeable impact or scar (not truly microscopic dust that can only be detected from wear of the surfaces). Say something carrying at least 1J of kinetic energy.
meteoroid
$endgroup$
For precision I'm excluding artificial meteoroids and satellite debris (which is discussed in another question) of all kinds. I'm also considering collisions large enough to produce a noticeable impact or scar (not truly microscopic dust that can only be detected from wear of the surfaces). Say something carrying at least 1J of kinetic energy.
meteoroid
meteoroid
edited 3 hours ago
Steve Linton
asked 4 hours ago
Steve LintonSteve Linton
6,96411741
6,96411741
$begingroup$
If a satellite does not respond to radio signals anymore, how should we know what hapened?
$endgroup$
– Uwe
4 hours ago
2
$begingroup$
Possible duplicate of Why haven't more spacecraft/satellites been hit by debris? TL;DR: there's been plenty of macroscopic pitting from impacts.
$endgroup$
– Russell Borogove
4 hours ago
1
$begingroup$
Those answers mostly talk about debris, this question specifically excludes that.
$endgroup$
– Organic Marble
4 hours ago
add a comment |
$begingroup$
If a satellite does not respond to radio signals anymore, how should we know what hapened?
$endgroup$
– Uwe
4 hours ago
2
$begingroup$
Possible duplicate of Why haven't more spacecraft/satellites been hit by debris? TL;DR: there's been plenty of macroscopic pitting from impacts.
$endgroup$
– Russell Borogove
4 hours ago
1
$begingroup$
Those answers mostly talk about debris, this question specifically excludes that.
$endgroup$
– Organic Marble
4 hours ago
$begingroup$
If a satellite does not respond to radio signals anymore, how should we know what hapened?
$endgroup$
– Uwe
4 hours ago
$begingroup$
If a satellite does not respond to radio signals anymore, how should we know what hapened?
$endgroup$
– Uwe
4 hours ago
2
2
$begingroup$
Possible duplicate of Why haven't more spacecraft/satellites been hit by debris? TL;DR: there's been plenty of macroscopic pitting from impacts.
$endgroup$
– Russell Borogove
4 hours ago
$begingroup$
Possible duplicate of Why haven't more spacecraft/satellites been hit by debris? TL;DR: there's been plenty of macroscopic pitting from impacts.
$endgroup$
– Russell Borogove
4 hours ago
1
1
$begingroup$
Those answers mostly talk about debris, this question specifically excludes that.
$endgroup$
– Organic Marble
4 hours ago
$begingroup$
Those answers mostly talk about debris, this question specifically excludes that.
$endgroup$
– Organic Marble
4 hours ago
add a comment |
2 Answers
2
active
oldest
votes
$begingroup$
Hypervelocity impacts on the space shuttle Orbiters were analyzed over the years to determine their origin.
After the post-flight inspection is completed, JSC
personnel analyze samples extracted from the impact
sites using a scanning electron microscope (SEM) equipped
with energy dispersive X-ray spectrometers (EDXA). Such techniques
allow engineers to determine whether the impactor was a naturally
occurring meteoroid or man-made orbital debris.
The paper ANALYSIS OF THE NASA SHUTTLE HYPERVELOCITY IMPACT DATABASE breaks down the source of the impacts for various regions of the Orbiter.
The majority of the hits are from debris, but some are attributed to meteoroids. Here's an example, a chart showing the results from the Reinforced Carbon-Carbon areas of the Orbiters (mostly the wing leading edges and nosecap).
$endgroup$
add a comment |
$begingroup$
A History of Micrometeoroid and Orbital Debris Impacts On The Space Shuttle lists the "top 20" strikes on space shuttle windows and radiators from 1992 to 2000; most of them are from debris but 4 appear to be from meteoroids. The biggest meteoroid hit appears to be a 5mm hole in a radiator from an 0.7mm meteoroid.
$endgroup$
add a comment |
Your Answer
StackExchange.ifUsing("editor", function () {
return StackExchange.using("mathjaxEditing", function () {
StackExchange.MarkdownEditor.creationCallbacks.add(function (editor, postfix) {
StackExchange.mathjaxEditing.prepareWmdForMathJax(editor, postfix, [["$", "$"], ["\\(","\\)"]]);
});
});
}, "mathjax-editing");
StackExchange.ready(function() {
var channelOptions = {
tags: "".split(" "),
id: "508"
};
initTagRenderer("".split(" "), "".split(" "), channelOptions);
StackExchange.using("externalEditor", function() {
// Have to fire editor after snippets, if snippets enabled
if (StackExchange.settings.snippets.snippetsEnabled) {
StackExchange.using("snippets", function() {
createEditor();
});
}
else {
createEditor();
}
});
function createEditor() {
StackExchange.prepareEditor({
heartbeatType: 'answer',
autoActivateHeartbeat: false,
convertImagesToLinks: false,
noModals: true,
showLowRepImageUploadWarning: true,
reputationToPostImages: null,
bindNavPrevention: true,
postfix: "",
imageUploader: {
brandingHtml: "Powered by u003ca class="icon-imgur-white" href="https://imgur.com/"u003eu003c/au003e",
contentPolicyHtml: "User contributions licensed under u003ca href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/"u003ecc by-sa 3.0 with attribution requiredu003c/au003e u003ca href="https://stackoverflow.com/legal/content-policy"u003e(content policy)u003c/au003e",
allowUrls: true
},
noCode: true, onDemand: true,
discardSelector: ".discard-answer"
,immediatelyShowMarkdownHelp:true
});
}
});
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function () {
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
});
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
StackExchange.ready(
function () {
StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2fspace.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f33712%2fhas-any-man-made-satellite-or-space-vehicle-ever-been-hit-by-a-natural-meteoroid%23new-answer', 'question_page');
}
);
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
2 Answers
2
active
oldest
votes
2 Answers
2
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
$begingroup$
Hypervelocity impacts on the space shuttle Orbiters were analyzed over the years to determine their origin.
After the post-flight inspection is completed, JSC
personnel analyze samples extracted from the impact
sites using a scanning electron microscope (SEM) equipped
with energy dispersive X-ray spectrometers (EDXA). Such techniques
allow engineers to determine whether the impactor was a naturally
occurring meteoroid or man-made orbital debris.
The paper ANALYSIS OF THE NASA SHUTTLE HYPERVELOCITY IMPACT DATABASE breaks down the source of the impacts for various regions of the Orbiter.
The majority of the hits are from debris, but some are attributed to meteoroids. Here's an example, a chart showing the results from the Reinforced Carbon-Carbon areas of the Orbiters (mostly the wing leading edges and nosecap).
$endgroup$
add a comment |
$begingroup$
Hypervelocity impacts on the space shuttle Orbiters were analyzed over the years to determine their origin.
After the post-flight inspection is completed, JSC
personnel analyze samples extracted from the impact
sites using a scanning electron microscope (SEM) equipped
with energy dispersive X-ray spectrometers (EDXA). Such techniques
allow engineers to determine whether the impactor was a naturally
occurring meteoroid or man-made orbital debris.
The paper ANALYSIS OF THE NASA SHUTTLE HYPERVELOCITY IMPACT DATABASE breaks down the source of the impacts for various regions of the Orbiter.
The majority of the hits are from debris, but some are attributed to meteoroids. Here's an example, a chart showing the results from the Reinforced Carbon-Carbon areas of the Orbiters (mostly the wing leading edges and nosecap).
$endgroup$
add a comment |
$begingroup$
Hypervelocity impacts on the space shuttle Orbiters were analyzed over the years to determine their origin.
After the post-flight inspection is completed, JSC
personnel analyze samples extracted from the impact
sites using a scanning electron microscope (SEM) equipped
with energy dispersive X-ray spectrometers (EDXA). Such techniques
allow engineers to determine whether the impactor was a naturally
occurring meteoroid or man-made orbital debris.
The paper ANALYSIS OF THE NASA SHUTTLE HYPERVELOCITY IMPACT DATABASE breaks down the source of the impacts for various regions of the Orbiter.
The majority of the hits are from debris, but some are attributed to meteoroids. Here's an example, a chart showing the results from the Reinforced Carbon-Carbon areas of the Orbiters (mostly the wing leading edges and nosecap).
$endgroup$
Hypervelocity impacts on the space shuttle Orbiters were analyzed over the years to determine their origin.
After the post-flight inspection is completed, JSC
personnel analyze samples extracted from the impact
sites using a scanning electron microscope (SEM) equipped
with energy dispersive X-ray spectrometers (EDXA). Such techniques
allow engineers to determine whether the impactor was a naturally
occurring meteoroid or man-made orbital debris.
The paper ANALYSIS OF THE NASA SHUTTLE HYPERVELOCITY IMPACT DATABASE breaks down the source of the impacts for various regions of the Orbiter.
The majority of the hits are from debris, but some are attributed to meteoroids. Here's an example, a chart showing the results from the Reinforced Carbon-Carbon areas of the Orbiters (mostly the wing leading edges and nosecap).
edited 4 hours ago
answered 4 hours ago
Organic MarbleOrganic Marble
54.3k3145231
54.3k3145231
add a comment |
add a comment |
$begingroup$
A History of Micrometeoroid and Orbital Debris Impacts On The Space Shuttle lists the "top 20" strikes on space shuttle windows and radiators from 1992 to 2000; most of them are from debris but 4 appear to be from meteoroids. The biggest meteoroid hit appears to be a 5mm hole in a radiator from an 0.7mm meteoroid.
$endgroup$
add a comment |
$begingroup$
A History of Micrometeoroid and Orbital Debris Impacts On The Space Shuttle lists the "top 20" strikes on space shuttle windows and radiators from 1992 to 2000; most of them are from debris but 4 appear to be from meteoroids. The biggest meteoroid hit appears to be a 5mm hole in a radiator from an 0.7mm meteoroid.
$endgroup$
add a comment |
$begingroup$
A History of Micrometeoroid and Orbital Debris Impacts On The Space Shuttle lists the "top 20" strikes on space shuttle windows and radiators from 1992 to 2000; most of them are from debris but 4 appear to be from meteoroids. The biggest meteoroid hit appears to be a 5mm hole in a radiator from an 0.7mm meteoroid.
$endgroup$
A History of Micrometeoroid and Orbital Debris Impacts On The Space Shuttle lists the "top 20" strikes on space shuttle windows and radiators from 1992 to 2000; most of them are from debris but 4 appear to be from meteoroids. The biggest meteoroid hit appears to be a 5mm hole in a radiator from an 0.7mm meteoroid.
answered 4 hours ago
Russell BorogoveRussell Borogove
84.2k3282365
84.2k3282365
add a comment |
add a comment |
Thanks for contributing an answer to Space Exploration Stack Exchange!
- Please be sure to answer the question. Provide details and share your research!
But avoid …
- Asking for help, clarification, or responding to other answers.
- Making statements based on opinion; back them up with references or personal experience.
Use MathJax to format equations. MathJax reference.
To learn more, see our tips on writing great answers.
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function () {
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
});
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
StackExchange.ready(
function () {
StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2fspace.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f33712%2fhas-any-man-made-satellite-or-space-vehicle-ever-been-hit-by-a-natural-meteoroid%23new-answer', 'question_page');
}
);
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function () {
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
});
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function () {
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
});
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function () {
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
});
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
$begingroup$
If a satellite does not respond to radio signals anymore, how should we know what hapened?
$endgroup$
– Uwe
4 hours ago
2
$begingroup$
Possible duplicate of Why haven't more spacecraft/satellites been hit by debris? TL;DR: there's been plenty of macroscopic pitting from impacts.
$endgroup$
– Russell Borogove
4 hours ago
1
$begingroup$
Those answers mostly talk about debris, this question specifically excludes that.
$endgroup$
– Organic Marble
4 hours ago