Huge Tumbling Satellite Could Fall to Earth Over US Tonight or Saturday, NASA Says (UPDATED)

Space.com ^ | 9/23/11 | Tariq Malik

[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.

[wolfman]

If it lands in Palestine, Texas i’m packing my bags for heaven.

[steve86]

What did you say the top speed of your Sportster is?

[Jed Eckert]

It is supposed to leave a 500 mile long debris track on the way down. It is also supposed to have a nuclear power supply. Potentially a "dirty bomb" consequence if the contents leak as it breaks up.

No nuclear material on board this one. They're just very concerned you might cut yourself on sharp piece of metal. (Yea, right) They're actually worried you might sell a piece for big bucks on ebay.

from Space.com: "We always tell people not to go pick things up because that is always safe," Johnson said. "You are much more likely to get cut by some sharp edge on a piece — there are no hazardous materials [and] there are no radiological materials [aboard]. So it is always best to leave it where it is, notify your local authorities and they will contact us and we will work whatever needs to be worked."

http://www.space.com/12923-uars-satellite-debris-ebay.html

[Koblenz]

Odds of being hit by a piece of it 1 in 3200.

The odds of me personally getting hit, or the odds of the United States getting hit? Because there's no way that there's 1 in 3200 odds in the US that I am going to get hit by that, unless they are expecting about 90,000 people to get hit by this thing.

[Carry_Okie]

And of course we don't have a functional antimissile defense system capable of reducing it to small harmless pieces.

After spending how much?

[ClearBlueSky]

Oh, if only we could direct it to Mecca! The irony of space rock worshippers being hit by space debris is just too good!

[LibWhacker]

http://www.lizard-tail.com/isana/lab/orb/misc/uars_path.html

[ozark hilljilly]

The biggest piece should weigh about 300 pounds.

And land smack dab on my henhouse. Insurance will find some excuse not to pay. :^(

[count-your-change]

As a consolation prize, if you’ll come up with an absolutely true conspiracy theory about the satellite was shot down by....?..., I’ll send you 32GB (cheap) and what you do with them is your affair.

[Myrddin]

The Sporty tops out at 115. It’s parked in my garage in Idaho. I have the Versys in San Diego. Top speed 128 MPH. My big Roadliner can reach 142 MPH. All on a closed track. If it manages to dump a toxic trail as plotted, much of my usual path home via I-15 is impacted.

[ClearBlueSky]

Forget an anti-missile defense system. How about a good old fashioned self-destruct mechanism? Would a battery and a detonator, of some kind, aboard cost as much as damages paid if this sucker lands on people?

[SilvieWaldorfMD]

If the satellite is the size of a bus, then wouldn’t it be logical that Barack Obama will throw this “satellite the size of a bus ‘under the bus’”?

[Unrepentant VN Vet]

The function of the antimissile defense system is simply to cause the incoming warhead to miss its target and/or fail to detonate when it gets there.

Got that stuff going, but plumb forgot to put the Hoover in the package to clean up.

Sorry about that.

[DYngbld]

What did you say the top speed of your Sportster is?

Is that a European or African Sportster?

[Dubya-M-DeesWent2SyriaStupid!]

This story was updated at 2:04 p.m. ET

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.

LINK

[Cvengr]

I don't believe it,..the damned thing is tracking right over me.

Time to go buy a lotto ticket.

[BigFinn]

Hopefully, it will fall on the UN building.

[Dubya-M-DeesWent2SyriaStupid!]

Weren’t they saying somewhere over water yesterday?I wonder if this will disrupt Obama’s vacation? Wasn’t he suppose to go on another one?

[steve86]

...reach 142 MPH. All on a closed track

If there was ever a time to ignore posted speed limits THIS IS IT!!!

[alancarp]

Roswell, NM. 8:23pm local time tonight. Book it.