CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Space station astronaut Rick Mastracchio (Muh-STRACK-ee-oh) may get his Christmas wish for a spacewalk or two because of a broken cooling system.
We've been space for over forty years but NASA was totally unprepared for a recent finding. Long term stints in space may cause damage to astronaut's eyesight.
Laser pointers are a lot of fun, provided you don't point it in an eye or try to hit a overflying airplane. But hitting the International Space Station is 100% OK, provided you communicate your intentions to an astronaut.
The orbit of the space station is always decaying a teeny bit due to atmospheric drag. There isn't much air up there but just enough to slow things down.