Ecuador confirms Russian rocket remains hit its satellite

QUITO, May 23 (Xinhua) -- The Ecuadorian Space Civil Agency ( EXA) said Thursday that Ecuador's first satellite "Pegaso" put into orbit last April was hit by the remains of a Russian rocket launched into space in 1985.

"The U.S. Space Command confirmed it WAS NOT A DIRECT COLLISION! ," Ronnie Nader, EXA's Director and creator of the satellite, said on Twitter.

The event occurred on early Thursday morning, wrote Nader. "The real state of Pegaso will be confirmed tomorrow (Friday). We know it was not a direct collision, but a lateral collision with particles."

Nader said "Pegaso might be damaged or be in an uncontrolled rotation, but since it is still in orbit we hope its mission can continue."

"Pegaso", a small cube of 10x10 centimeters with panels of 75 centimeters, with a weight of 1.2 kilograms, was built in Ecuador without any foreign help and carries a video camera to broadcast images in real time.

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