From ISS Spin to civilian trips: How has 2021 been a memorable year for space?
With 2021 soon coming to an end, we can conclude that it has been one of the most memorable years for outer space, especially following the last year’s Black Swan fiasco. In fact, there’s no denying that humans are inquisitive about outer space now more than ever and had decidedly chosen 2021 as the year to launch several space missions and crowding the outer space. Here’s a look back at the significant incidents of the outer space.
China’s rocket launch
On 29th April, China had launched its Long March 5B Rocket without any prior intimation and took the world by surprise. The rocket, 23 tons in weight and 30 metres in length, was manufactured in the Chinese capital. However, the mission went haywire and caused a potential threat as it made an uncontrollable re-entry into the atmosphere instead of returning back to earth. It even went untraceable for weeks until it tumbled and crashed into the Indian ocean somewhere around mid-May.
Space X’s Starship fiasco
Elon Musk’s Space X had launched prototype rockets Starship SN9 and Starship SN10, both of which failed to land safely and had burst into flames during the return journey despite their successful launches. Thereafter, Space X went silent for a while until SN15 made it through and even managed a safe landing.
Russian satellite debris
Russia, one of the most successful nations when it came to space missions took the world by surprise when its defunct satellite on its way to test the anti-satellite weapon burst into million pieces and left approximately 1500 floating debris in space. The debris still continue to be a threat to the International Space Station.
History made by Virgin Galactic
Virgin Galactic is an American spaceflight company owned by billionaire Richard Bronson who aims to create a new space age in which even civilians can sign up for a ride to the space and back. The firm made history in 2021 when the owner himself managed to fly to the outer space on his spaceplane VSS Unity. This event became an overnight sensation. However, it also made news for the wrong reason when pilots reportedly ignored warning signs during lift-off and also flew in an unsanctioned air space.
Film-shooting in space
Russia allowed a movie crew comprising of famous actor-director duo Yulia Peresild and Klim Shipenko to fly onto the outer space and shoot a feature film titled ‘Vyzov.’ This was the first time ever in which an almost an entire film was shot in space, with the crew (not comprising of professional astronauts) remaining in the International Space Station for as long as 12 days.
ISS underwent a spin
ISS or the International Space Station had gone out of control for a period of 50 minutes during which it spun into a backflip and no one was able to manage it. It went almost 540 degrees off course due to an erroneous attachment installed by the Russian-made ‘Nouka’ module. However, fortunately everything came back to normal once the flaw was detected and immediately fixed, dodging a potential catastrophe.