ISS can withstand impacts—but only to a point
The thought of the ISS getting smacked by space junk or a tiny asteroid conjures images of the station crumbling into a giant space heap, but the lab is tougher than it looks. In 2016, “a paint flake or a small metal fragment no bigger than a few thousandths of a millimeter across,” struck a cupola window, according to ESA. Indeed, micrometeors and debris smack into the ISS on occasion, which is okay given that the space station is the most heavily armored spacecraft ever built. But there are limits; objects larger than 0.4 inches (1 centimeter) in diameter, flying at speeds in excess of 18,000 miles per hour (29,000 kilometers per hour), would likely pierce the hull, which, in a word, would be bad.
