Lost astronaut tool bag caught on video as it orbits Earth--watch here

November 25, 5:58 AMSpace News ExaminerPatricia Phillips

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Last week, astronaut Heidemarie Stefanyshyn-Piper suffered one of the more embarrassing moments in space when she lost a highly-specialized tool bag and tools  while working outside the International Space Station (ISS).  Piper was working on a balky solar array joint during one of the STS-126 mission's four spacewalks.

The folks at  SpaceWeather (one of my favorites) received a video of the lost tool bag zipping past Earth in its own orbit.

..Keven Fetter of Brockville, Ontario, video-recorded the bag zipping past the 4th-magnitude star eta Pisces... "It was easily 8th magnitude or brighter," says Fetter.

Here's Fetter's video. Watch closely as the bag moves from the upper right to the lower left.

If you want to see the orbiting tool bag  for yourself, you can input your location at the SpaceWeather Satellite Tracker and get your own personalized forecast for tool bag sightings. How cool is that?

Real-Time Satellite Tracking (an indispensable tool) offers live tracking maps via Google Earth and predictions. Here's some basic data from them:

NORAD ID: 33442
Int'l Code: 2008-067BL
Perigee: 355.2 km
Apogee: 360.5 km
Inclination: 51.6 deg;
Period: 91.6 min
Launch date: November 19, 2008
Source: United States (US)