On 3/14/2010 3:52 AM, Raven wrote:

Maybe someone originally opined or calculated that the ISS can survive a
fleck of paint as much as an inch across, or that an inch-size rock
striking a pressurized module would leave a pair of holes small enough
for the rest of the complex to survive, and the distinction was lost
during serial retelling. :-)

It would be fun to figure out how much total energy would be released in
a impact like that, assuming the impactor was rock or nickel-iron.
I got my little tektite off the shelf, and that's about an inch in size,
and weighs in at 1/4 ounce, or 110 grains.
Using this bullet impact energy calculator:
http://www.firearmexpertwitness.com/...s/calcnrg.html and
converting the 11,000 meters per second velocity into 36,080 feet per
second, we end up with a impact force of 317,891.67 foot-pounds.
Ouch.
The small ones that have hit satellites were converted into plasma by
the heat released on impact. The effect internally on the ISS would be
like having a hand grenade going off in the room, due to the severe
shockwave generated by the hypersonic plasma and vaporized metal being
blown out of the impact hole.

Pat