【By Liu Bai, Observers Network】

According to aviation news website Aviation A2Z, on October 16, a Boeing 737 MAX 8 flight operated by United Airlines, en route from Denver to Los Angeles, had its windshield cracked during the flight, which is speculated to have been caused by space debris or a small meteorite impact, resulting in minor injuries to the pilot's arm. During this time, the plane descended from 36,000 feet (approximately 10,973 meters) to 26,000 feet (approximately 7,925 meters) and made an emergency landing in Salt Lake City, causing a six-hour delay. The incident is still under investigation.

Emergency landing itself is not an unusual situation, and while a cracked windshield is not common, it is a known type of accident. The special aspect of this incident lies in the details of its cause.

Aerospace information website OMAAT reported that a set of photos posted on social media showed burn marks on the aircraft's windshield, and the pilot had bruises, indicating that this was a high-energy impact rather than a simple structural rupture.

The United Airlines flight was cruising at about 10,000 meters when it was approximately 200 miles (about 322 kilometers) southeast of Salt Lake City, and the crew discovered the damage at that point.

The pilot immediately initiated the descent procedure, reducing the altitude to approximately 7,925 meters and heading towards the nearest suitable airport for an emergency landing. The aircraft, registered as N17327, finally landed safely on runway 16L at Salt Lake City Airport, which completely matched the flight path indicated in one of the publicly available cockpit images.

Aerospace enthusiasts, based on the pattern of burn marks and impact traces, speculated that the cause of the accident could be space debris or a small meteorite. Although these claims have not been confirmed, they reveal an extremely rare situation.

Normally, aircraft windshields are designed to withstand significant bird strikes and pressure changes, but cases of high-speed debris from orbit hitting commercial aircraft are almost unheard of.

At present, the source of the damage has not been officially confirmed. United Airlines stated that, aside from the pilot suffering minor bruising, there were no other reports of injuries, and the incident is still under investigation.

Under normal circumstances, a cracked windshield would trigger standard procedures for emergency landing and inspection, usually due to temperature fluctuations or minor mechanical stress. However, in this incident, the obvious burn marks added to the mystery of the cause, and aviation authorities are expected to conduct a thorough investigation.

Regardless of the cause, the crew's response was in line with operating procedures, showing a quick reaction and controlled operation, prioritizing safety. Passengers eventually flew to Los Angeles without any further issues, and this highly unusual incident ended safely.

It is worth noting that according to data from agencies such as NASA, the European Space Agency (ESA), and the International Meteor Organization (IMO), the probability of a commercial airliner being hit by space debris or a meteorite during flight is extremely low, almost negligible.

Space debris mainly resides in low Earth orbit between 200 and 2,000 kilometers, whereas commercial aircraft cruise at about 9 to 13 kilometers, so they do not operate at the same altitude. Although about 48 tons of meteorites enter Earth's atmosphere daily, over 99.9% of them are burned up in the upper atmosphere, and very few fragments reach the troposphere, let alone strike a high-speed flying passenger aircraft.

Data from the FAA and the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) show that there have been no confirmed cases of commercial airplanes being struck by space debris or meteorites.

Academic research also indicates that the probability of such events is on the order of one in a billion.

In comparison, real-world threats to flight safety primarily come from bird strikes, hail, lightning, and mechanical or human factors, not from objects from outer space. Nevertheless, by continuously monitoring orbital debris and meteor activity, further improvements can be made in the proactive protection of aviation safety.

This article is an exclusive contribution from Observers Network, and any reproduction without permission is prohibited.

Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7562783634751586866/

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