ooops
On November 2nd, 2023, during a routine maintenance spacewalk outside the International Space Station (ISS), astronauts Jasmin Moghbeli and Loral O’Hara encountered the untethered. The culprit? A tool bag containing essential equipment unintentionally slipped from their grasp and became an unexpected addition to Earth’s orbit.
This wasn’t the first time tools went rogue in space. Lost items range from a spatula in 2006 to a glove during the first-ever American spacewalk in 1965. However, Moghbeli and O’Hara’s tool bag became an instant celebrity due to its surprising visibility. Orbiting just ahead of the ISS, the bright white bag became a target for skywatchers with powerful binoculars, offering a glimpse into the sometimes clumsy reality of space missions.
Despite the bag’s fame, its loss wasn’t without consequence. The tools it contained were important for future maintenance tasks, necessitating creative workarounds by the astronauts and ground teams. While the incident ultimately posed no serious threat, it served as a reminder of the challenges and potential mishaps inherent in space exploration, even during seemingly mundane activities.