Eye to the sky: "Ferrari of Space" satellite plummeting to earth (Video)
Posted by: Jon Ben-Mayor on 11/10/2013 09:01 AM
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The Gravity Field and Steady-State Ocean Circulation Explorer (GOCE), dubbed the "Ferrari of Space," is going to crash into the atmosphere at some point between today and tomorrow, the only problem is no one is exactly sure where the pieces of the $466 million paper weight will land.
"Some satellites take decades to come back after finishing operations, says Esa mission manager Dr Rune Floberghagen.
Modelling work indicates that perhaps up to 25% of the spacecraft may survive all the way to the surface.
In late October, according to RT, the satellite’s supply of xenon gas ran out; however, for two more weeks the satellite continued its orbit until its engines died and it started the inevitable fall to Earth.
The problem scientists are faced with now is, despite knowing that most of GOCE will burn up in Earth’s atmosphere, around 50 fragments of debris weighing in at about 275 kilograms will slip past it. This means they could end up falling literally anywhere.
The lack of knowledge is caused by constant changes in the Earth’s upper atmosphere, which are influenced by solar activity.
But given the proportion of the Earth covered by ocean, it is highly likely that this debris will fall harmlessly into water.
"Some satellites take decades to come back after finishing operations, says Esa mission manager Dr Rune Floberghagen.
Modelling work indicates that perhaps up to 25% of the spacecraft may survive all the way to the surface.
In late October, according to RT, the satellite’s supply of xenon gas ran out; however, for two more weeks the satellite continued its orbit until its engines died and it started the inevitable fall to Earth.
The problem scientists are faced with now is, despite knowing that most of GOCE will burn up in Earth’s atmosphere, around 50 fragments of debris weighing in at about 275 kilograms will slip past it. This means they could end up falling literally anywhere.
The lack of knowledge is caused by constant changes in the Earth’s upper atmosphere, which are influenced by solar activity.
But given the proportion of the Earth covered by ocean, it is highly likely that this debris will fall harmlessly into water.
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