Posted on 09/23/2011 10:07:53 AM PDT by Evil Slayer
A huge, dead satellite tumbling to Earth is falling slower than expected, and may now plummet down somewhere over the United States tonight or early Saturday, despite forecasts that it would miss North America entirely, NASA officials now say.
The 6 1/2-ton Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS) was expected to fall to Earth sometime this afternoon (Sept. 23), but changes in the school bus-size satellite's motion may push it to early Saturday, according to NASA's latest observations of the spacecraft.
"The satellite's orientation or configuration apparently has changed, and that is now slowing its descent," NASA officials wrote in a morning status update today. "There is a low probability any debris that survives re-entry will land in the United States, but the possibility cannot be discounted because of this changing rate of descent."
NASA expects about 26 large pieces of the UARS spacecraft to survive re-entry through Earth's atmosphere and reach the planet's surface. The biggest piece should weigh about 300 pounds. The spacecraft is the largest NASA satellite to fall from space uncontrolled since 1979.
(Excerpt) Read more at space.com ...
Seeing what?
Raining bus parts for somebody’s forecast. Extreme velocity and heat raining parts at that. Yikes
Where do you see this???
where are you watching it?
Twitter post says probably one more time around.
frm Twitter:
UARS_Reentry UARS Reentry
If #UARS has made it past this perigee (close approach) it’s probably going around again, as the fantabulous @TSKelso says
It the rate it is dropping it seems like it’ll make it to 76 miles (start of re-entry altitude) by the time it makes it to the Left Coast!
She’s coming around the bend again.
Perfectly clear skies here (Poulsbo... a bit west of Seattle). Keeping my fingers crossed that it bites the dust over us!
Are you outside waiting for it?
I know you asked Jack....but these are pretty good links:
http://twitter.com/#!/UARS_Reentry
http://www.livestream.com/spaceflightnowmobile
http://www.heavens-above.com/orbit.aspx?satid=21701&lat=46.877&lng=-96.789&loc=Fargo&alt=274&tz=CST
I haven’t looked at its orbit. Is Seattle close to the apex.....
I’m just feet from the door... when the track has it close I’ll head back outside.
frm Twitter:
TSKelso T.S. Kelso
@
@TKennebeck Should be visible at least the distance from Seattle to SF. Just passed that distance from Hawaii, but I didn’t see it. :)
OHH! Get pics if you can, please.
How far south does it go.........
Predictions
http://reentrynews.aero.org/1991063b.html
It’s climbing again in altitude headed for apogee. Looks like the point at which it hits the Left Coast is right at the WA/OR border.
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