The International Space Station (ISS) executed evasive maneuvers Wednesday evening (April 30) to avoid a piece of passing space debris.
Hardware from a Chinese Long March rocket that launched in 2005 was on course for a close flyby of the ISS, prompting mission operators to plan an orbital boost to put some further distance between the station and debris. The maneuver was pre-planned by NASA, the Russian space agency Roscosmos, and other international partners, according to a NASA statement.
