Satellite continues fall to Earth -- but where will it land?
By Greg Botelho and Ralph Ellis, CNN
updated 4:27 PM EST, Sat November 9, 2013 |
(CNN) -- Earthlings, you're safe for another day or two.
After that, you might want to watch your head.
The 2,000-pound Gravity Field and Steady-State Ocean Circulation Explorer -- a European Space Agency satellite known shorthand as GOCE-- continued its freefall Saturday, dropping an estimated 13 kilometers (8 miles) over the course of the day. That's a pretty good clip, but the former orbiter still has a long ways to go: It started the day at an altitude of about 160 kilometers, said ESA's Christoph Steiger earlier Saturday.
"Final entry into the atmosphere (is) probably less than two days away," Steiger added.
Where will the satellite -- or more accurately, fragments thereof -- hit? Nobody really knows.
An ocean somewhere is the best bet, with unpopulated areas on land also a good possibility. Still, there remains a chance that pieces may hit where people live. The space agency has promised on its website that potential landing spots will be narrowed down as GOCE gets closer to reentry.
One good thing is that humans on Earth needn't worry about is remnants of a nuclear powered or similarly fueled object. While that's the case for some other satellites, GOCE had been powered by solar panels and not-your-average lithium-ion battery.
That battery ran out of juice on October 21, meaning it lasted longer -- since its 2009 launch -- than most expected.
GOCE's altitude was lowered to about 139 miles, lowest of any research satellites, to improve the accuracy of the information being gathered, ESA said on its website.
On November 4, ESA reported that the satellite was orbiting the Earth at 119 miles and the rate of descent would increase significantly in coming days.
That's proven true to form, though signals have continued to come in despite what Steiger called "extreme environmental conditions" -- in other words, the kind of stuff that happens to any falling object as it plummets toward the Earth.
To this point, the scientist added: "Recently, we have noticed a significant temperature increase in several areas of the spacecraft, arguably linked to GOCE encountering a more and more dense atmosphere as its orbit keeps dropping."
The five-meter long GOCE was a cumulative effort involving 45 companies from some 13 European nations.
When it strikes Earth, that will officially end its mission to map variations in the Earth's gravity in 3D, provide ocean circulation patterns and make other measurements.
In March 2011, the European Space Agency added another role -- as the "first seismometer in orbit" -- when it detected sound waves from the massive earthquake that struck Japan.
______________________________________________
...we're takin' bets on where this sucker's likely ta come down. And I say Troll's back yard! I got $20 on it! Anybody else? C'mon, c'mon... Jump in here this thing's on its way! It won't wait. Nope. We're gonna be waitin' for Zsa Zsa ta check out, and this bastard will beat her to it!
-- Edited by Uke on Saturday 9th of November 2013 06:16:19 PM
See...right here, the headline! They promise that this piece of space junk's likely target is Troll's back yard! (Good luck findin' anything out there though! I lost a rental car out there back in '07... Avis didn't charge me though. I told 'em it was stolen, and since they never did find it...
An artist's impression of the GOCE satellite in orbit. In order to precisely measure the planet's gravity, the sleek, 16-foot long satellite is designed to orbit at a very low altitude -- just 160 miles above the Earth. (AOES Medialab)
Scientists inspect the solar panels on the GOCE satellite during final testing at ESA-ESTEC in 2008. (ESA)
A precise model of Earth's 'geoid' -- essentially a virtual surface map of where water does not flow from one point to another -- is crucial for deriving accurate measurements of ocean circulation and sea-level change. In this map from GOCE, colors represent deviations in height (100 m to +100 m) from an ideal geoid. (ESA/HPF/DLR)
The GOCE satellite's orbit is so low that it experiences drag from the outer edges of Earth's atmosphere. (ESA /AOES Medialab)
An artist's impression of the GOCE satellite in orbit. In order to precisely measure the planet's gravity, the sleek, 16-foot long satellite is designed to orbit at a very low altitude -- just 160 miles above the Earth. (ESA - AOES Medialab)
A defunct satellite from the European Space Agency the size of a Chevy Suburban is set to plunge to Earth somewhere between Sunday night and Monday afternoon -- and experts say there's no way to precisely determine where it will crash.
GOCE, or Gravity field and steady-state Ocean Circulation Explorer, ran out of gas last month and has been steadily sinking towards the Earth. As the planet rotates, the satellite whizzes over nearly every point on Earth. Experts expect it to plunge harmlessly into the oceans that cover 70 percent of the surface of the planet. But what if it doesnt? What if it takes out your old Accord?
Making Odds
Gambling houses will take bets on more or less anything. Here's the odds (as of Saturday morning) on the GOCE satellite crashing down on different continents, British gaming company Ladbrokes told FoxNews.com.
North and South America: 6/4 Russia and Asia: 2/1 Africa: 4/1 Europe: 5/1 Australia: 10/1
Bets are void if it lands in the sea, the company noted
Basically, governments are responsible for their own spacecraft, explained Marcia S. Smith, president of the Space and Technology Policy Group in Arlington, Va. [If] you could prove a piece of GOCE hit your Honda, you could go to your government to make a claim, she told FoxNews.com.
But dont put the ESAs lawyer on speed dial just yet. Most of the fragments of the satellite are likely to burn up on re-entry, said Heiner Klinkrad, Head of ESAs Space Debris Office according to an ESA blog.
Most of these fragments will completely burn up. A small fraction of the initial spacecraft mass -- about 20 percent or 200 kilograms [440 pounds] -- is expected to reach ground, distributed across dozens of fragments, spread over a sizable re-entry ground swath.
400 pounds of smoking metal spread over a "sizeable swath" is nothing to sniff at. But should one of those fragments land on U.S. soil, youre fully covered, according to the United Nations. The U.N.s Convention on International Liability for Damage Caused by Space Objects was created in September of 1972, and has been ratified by 88 countries and signed by 22 nations as of January 1, 2013.
A launching State shall be absolutely liable to pay compensation for damage caused by its space object on the surface of the Earth or to aircraft in flight, reads the policy. And the GOCE satellite was launched from Russia, so that country would be responsible, said Mark Hopkins chairman of the executive committee of the National Space Society.
While space objects reenter the atmosphere all the time, few pieces survive the fiery trip and many of those end up in the ocean, Smith said. But sometimes, they do. Russia's Cosmos 954 satellite crashed in Canada in 1978, with a radioactive energy source. That sounds more alarming than it actually was; the element was vanishingly small when it hit ground, Hopkins said. But Canada did try to get money back from the Russians -- and they did pay up, he said.
It was a lot less than they wanted, he told FoxNews.com.
Indeed, the Canadian government asked for $6 million to cover cleanup and "future unpredicted expenses," according to Matthew Kleinman's "The Little Book of Space Law." Russia paid half that. It's up to a government to bring charges, according to the policy book.
"Had a Canadian citizen been injured by the Cosmos 954 debris, his only recourse would have been to either convince the Canadian government to bring a claim against the Soviet Union on his behalf or bring a claim on his own behalf in a national court with appropriate jurisdiction. If he won his case, he would then have had to hope that the Soviet government honored the court's judgment," the book notes.
So if you hear a crash in the night, rest assured that the responsible party will most likely pick up the tab. Just make sure to take a picture.
Freddie Krueger said
7:11 AM, 11/10/13
Hmm, I think maybe this can be used as an excuse in an investigation.
Uke said
7:50 AM, 11/10/13
If anything Troll will more'n likely figure out another lay off outa this one! Then it'll go inta the very
next edition of "Troll's Big Book of Excuses for Not Reporting for Duty"!
The rat bastard!
Uke said
10:13 PM, 11/10/13
Not ta worry, the damn thing's not due for a few hours. Amd then it'll probably burn up before it all hits the ground whole, which probably will disappoint Troll, 'cause he'll lose another lay off chance!
Troll said
11:17 PM, 11/10/13
Uke wrote:
Not ta worry, the damn thing's not due for a few hours. Amd then it'll probably burn up before it all hits the ground whole, which probably will disappoint Troll, 'cause he'll lose another lay off chance!
LOBUS
Troll said
11:18 PM, 11/10/13
Lay Off Burned Up Satellite.
The Krink said
8:54 AM, 11/11/13
Well it may have to land a block from you to be a valid claim.
Satellite continues fall to Earth -- but where will it land?
After that, you might want to watch your head.
The 2,000-pound Gravity Field and Steady-State Ocean Circulation Explorer -- a European Space Agency satellite known shorthand as GOCE-- continued its freefall Saturday, dropping an estimated 13 kilometers (8 miles) over the course of the day. That's a pretty good clip, but the former orbiter still has a long ways to go: It started the day at an altitude of about 160 kilometers, said ESA's Christoph Steiger earlier Saturday.
"Final entry into the atmosphere (is) probably less than two days away," Steiger added.
Where will the satellite -- or more accurately, fragments thereof -- hit? Nobody really knows.
An ocean somewhere is the best bet, with unpopulated areas on land also a good possibility. Still, there remains a chance that pieces may hit where people live. The space agency has promised on its website that potential landing spots will be narrowed down as GOCE gets closer to reentry.
That hadn't happened yet as of Saturday afternoon, though anyone can track the satellite via an ESA website.
One good thing is that humans on Earth needn't worry about is remnants of a nuclear powered or similarly fueled object. While that's the case for some other satellites, GOCE had been powered by solar panels and not-your-average lithium-ion battery.
That battery ran out of juice on October 21, meaning it lasted longer -- since its 2009 launch -- than most expected.
GOCE's altitude was lowered to about 139 miles, lowest of any research satellites, to improve the accuracy of the information being gathered, ESA said on its website.
On November 4, ESA reported that the satellite was orbiting the Earth at 119 miles and the rate of descent would increase significantly in coming days.
That's proven true to form, though signals have continued to come in despite what Steiger called "extreme environmental conditions" -- in other words, the kind of stuff that happens to any falling object as it plummets toward the Earth.
To this point, the scientist added: "Recently, we have noticed a significant temperature increase in several areas of the spacecraft, arguably linked to GOCE encountering a more and more dense atmosphere as its orbit keeps dropping."
The five-meter long GOCE was a cumulative effort involving 45 companies from some 13 European nations.
When it strikes Earth, that will officially end its mission to map variations in the Earth's gravity in 3D, provide ocean circulation patterns and make other measurements.
In March 2011, the European Space Agency added another role -- as the "first seismometer in orbit" -- when it detected sound waves from the massive earthquake that struck Japan.
______________________________________________
...we're takin' bets on where this sucker's likely ta come down. And I say Troll's back yard! I got $20
on it! Anybody else? C'mon, c'mon... Jump in here this thing's on its way! It won't wait. Nope. We're gonna be waitin' for Zsa Zsa ta check out, and this bastard will beat her to it!
-- Edited by Uke on Saturday 9th of November 2013 06:16:19 PM
See...right here, the headline! They promise that this piece of space junk's likely target is Troll's back yard! (Good luck findin' anything out there though! I lost a rental car out there back in '07... Avis didn't charge me though. I told 'em it was stolen, and since they never did find it...
________________________________________________________
A 2,000-pound satellite may crash in your backyard Sunday night
By Jeremy A. Kaplan
Published November 09, 2013An artist's impression of the GOCE satellite in orbit. In order to precisely measure the planet's gravity, the sleek, 16-foot long satellite is designed to orbit at a very low altitude -- just 160 miles above the Earth. (AOES Medialab)
Scientists inspect the solar panels on the GOCE satellite during final testing at ESA-ESTEC in 2008. (ESA)
A precise model of Earth's 'geoid' -- essentially a virtual surface map of where water does not flow from one point to another -- is crucial for deriving accurate measurements of ocean circulation and sea-level change. In this map from GOCE, colors represent deviations in height (100 m to +100 m) from an ideal geoid. (ESA/HPF/DLR)
The GOCE satellite's orbit is so low that it experiences drag from the outer edges of Earth's atmosphere. (ESA /AOES Medialab)
An artist's impression of the GOCE satellite in orbit. In order to precisely measure the planet's gravity, the sleek, 16-foot long satellite is designed to orbit at a very low altitude -- just 160 miles above the Earth. (ESA - AOES Medialab)
Who do you sue if youre hit by a satellite?
A defunct satellite from the European Space Agency the size of a Chevy Suburban is set to plunge to Earth somewhere between Sunday night and Monday afternoon -- and experts say there's no way to precisely determine where it will crash.
GOCE, or Gravity field and steady-state Ocean Circulation Explorer, ran out of gas last month and has been steadily sinking towards the Earth. As the planet rotates, the satellite whizzes over nearly every point on Earth. Experts expect it to plunge harmlessly into the oceans that cover 70 percent of the surface of the planet. But what if it doesnt? What if it takes out your old Accord?
Gambling houses will take bets on more or less anything. Here's the odds (as of Saturday morning) on the GOCE satellite crashing down on different continents, British gaming company Ladbrokes told FoxNews.com.
North and South America: 6/4
Russia and Asia: 2/1
Africa: 4/1
Europe: 5/1
Australia: 10/1
Bets are void if it lands in the sea, the company noted
Basically, governments are responsible for their own spacecraft, explained Marcia S. Smith, president of the Space and Technology Policy Group in Arlington, Va. [If] you could prove a piece of GOCE hit your Honda, you could go to your government to make a claim, she told FoxNews.com.
WHERE IS IT NOW? Track the GOCE satellite here
But dont put the ESAs lawyer on speed dial just yet. Most of the fragments of the satellite are likely to burn up on re-entry, said Heiner Klinkrad, Head of ESAs Space Debris Office according to an ESA blog.
Most of these fragments will completely burn up. A small fraction of the initial spacecraft mass -- about 20 percent or 200 kilograms [440 pounds] -- is expected to reach ground, distributed across dozens of fragments, spread over a sizable re-entry ground swath.
400 pounds of smoking metal spread over a "sizeable swath" is nothing to sniff at. But should one of those fragments land on U.S. soil, youre fully covered, according to the United Nations. The U.N.s Convention on International Liability for Damage Caused by Space Objects
was created in September of 1972, and has been ratified by 88 countries and signed by 22 nations as of January 1, 2013.
A launching State shall be absolutely liable to pay compensation for damage caused by its space object on the surface of the Earth or to aircraft in flight, reads the policy. And the GOCE satellite was launched from Russia, so that country would be responsible, said Mark Hopkins chairman of the executive committee of the National Space Society.
While space objects reenter the atmosphere all the time, few pieces survive the fiery trip and many of those end up in the ocean, Smith said. But sometimes, they do. Russia's Cosmos 954 satellite crashed in Canada in 1978, with a radioactive energy source. That sounds more alarming than it actually was; the element was vanishingly small when it hit ground, Hopkins said. But Canada did try to get money back from the Russians -- and they did pay up, he said.
It was a lot less than they wanted, he told FoxNews.com.
Indeed, the Canadian government asked for $6 million to cover cleanup and "future unpredicted expenses," according to Matthew Kleinman's "The Little Book of Space Law
." Russia paid half that. It's up to a government to bring charges, according to the policy book.
"Had a Canadian citizen been injured by the Cosmos 954 debris, his only recourse would have been to either convince the Canadian government to bring a claim against the Soviet Union on his behalf or bring a claim on his own behalf in a national court with appropriate jurisdiction. If he won his case, he would then have had to hope that the Soviet government honored the court's judgment," the book notes.
So if you hear a crash in the night, rest assured that the responsible party will most likely pick up the tab. Just make sure to take a picture.
next edition of "Troll's Big Book of Excuses for Not Reporting for Duty"!
The rat bastard!
Not ta worry, the damn thing's not due for a few hours. Amd then it'll probably burn up before it all hits the ground whole, which probably will disappoint Troll, 'cause he'll lose another lay off chance!
LOBUS