International Space Station Nearly Struck By Space Junk

International Space Station Nearly Struck By Space Junk: Six Astronauts Nearly Had To Abandon Ship After A Piece Of A Russian Rocket Nearly Collided With The International Space Station -- Chicago Tribune/US News and World Report

Sometime Friday afternoon, the six people--including two Americans--aboard the International Space Station got a warning: Head into the nearest Russian Soyuz spacecraft and wait for further instructions, because a chunk of a disabled Russian rocket was hurtling towards them at speeds of over 17,000 miles per hour.

The threat of man-made space debris is increasingly becoming a problem for astronauts and the nearly 700 satellites orbiting earth. NASA estimates there are about 19,000 man-made objects orbiting earth--at orbital speeds, even a tiny particle can destroy satellites or cause serious damage to the space station.

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More News On The Passing Debris That Forced The ISS Crew Into Their Escape Pods

Close encounter: Space station astronauts forced to shelter in escape pods after near miss with debris from Russian rocket -- Daily Mail
Astronauts take refuge in escape capsules as space station threatened by debris -- The Telegraph
Space junk forces astronauts into escape capsules on International Space Station -- CNN
Astronauts scramble for escape pods as space junk threat gets serious -- Christian Science Monitor