posted on Feb, 17 2011 @ 09:56 PM
reply to post by Kali74
Well....that particular piece of space junk (the washer) was quite close to the camera. The only difference, from those videos, is the fact that
since they are Humans without EVA suites, obviously there's an atmosphere.
The point is how objects behave in micro-gravity. And, at the sorts of speeds that are normal Human activity (that we're accustomed to) the presence
of air is insignificant. Unless the object had very little mass, and large surface area...like a small feather of course. Absent the air, then
objects move similarly, regardless.
The washer was a "part" of the ISS, and therefore already in orbit, at the general same velocity. Its additional motion, once sent in that slow
tumble, was just another minor vector component. It will continue, in some manner that there isn't enough info, from the video, to figure...it may
remain in the same vicinity, travelling along with ISS for some time.....in its own independent "orbit". Until or unless it interacts with another
object. It is all a matter of vectors, which is a definition of velocity and direction. Of course, it gets more complicated, in direction, since it
is going to continue to be influenced by Earth's gravity, and follow an elliptical path of orbit....it isn't going fast enough to escape into deep
space.....since its speed is only slightydifferent, now.
But, yes it will go into the ever-growing catalog of more space debris to keep track of.