Scientists try to speculate where the satellite will land after falling on earth
September 23rd, 2011 - 7:42 pm ICT by Aishwarya BhattNew York, Sept 23 (THAINDIAN NEWS) Scientists around the world are in a race against time to determine where the falling NASA satellite will land. The 6,500kg Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite which has been losing altitude since 2005 is expected to fall to earth on Friday but it is not known where.
On Friday, the satellite is expected to explode into hundreds of pieces when it reenters the planet. Though most of the parts will be burned, some of the tougher and heavier parts will fall to the planet.
The scientists say some of the debris which will fall down could weigh as much as 136 kg and the debris will be scattered over an area of about 800 kilometers. One thing is for certain, the debris will not be hitting North America. That is about the surest thing that the scientists can say.
According to space agency NASA, the probability of debris hitting a person is one in 3,200. NASA is counting on the massive size of the ocean to swallow up the debris. The surface of earth is made up of 70 percent water.
Satellites from the sky fall to the planet when they lose their altitude. Most of them go without any event.
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Tags: altitude, atmosphere research satellite, debris, kg, kilometers, massive size, nasa, nasa satellite, north america, probability, race against time, satellites, scientists, sky fall, space agency, surface of earth, upper atmosphere research