DUARS Satellite Re-Entry: Impressive Light Show & Potential Debris Threat

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SUMMARY

The UARS satellite is expected to re-enter Earth's atmosphere this weekend, moving faster than initially predicted. NASA has indicated that there is a 1-in-3200 chance of debris hitting someone on the ground, with the satellite's remnants weighing approximately 1,170 pounds and composed of materials like titanium, aluminum, steel, and beryllium. The satellite's trajectory covers a wide area, including major cities, but the strike zone will shrink significantly in the coming days. For most individuals, the probability of being hit will drop to zero as the satellite descends.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of satellite re-entry dynamics
  • Familiarity with NASA's satellite tracking systems
  • Knowledge of materials used in satellite construction
  • Awareness of orbital mechanics and trajectory calculations
NEXT STEPS
  • Research the effects of satellite debris on Earth and safety measures
  • Learn about NASA's satellite tracking and prediction tools
  • Study the materials used in satellite construction and their properties
  • Explore the principles of orbital mechanics and re-entry trajectories
USEFUL FOR

Space enthusiasts, aerospace engineers, safety regulators, and anyone interested in satellite technology and its implications for Earth. This discussion is particularly relevant for those monitoring satellite re-entries and their potential hazards.

  • #151
As projected: It just hit the southern-most point and is heading North over the Pacific towards Oregon now.
 
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  • #152
Ivan Seeking said:
As projected: It just hit the southern-most point and is heading North over the Pacific towards Oregon now.

Where are you following this (data) please and will you get a shot at it? thanks
 
  • #153
Nada
 
  • #155
  • #157
Janus said:
According to this tracking site, it is just passing over the horn of Africa.

http://www.ustream.tv/channel/5336250

Any links that normal people can see?
 
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  • #158
It just passed over southern Australia and appears to be heading for Canada if it make it that far.

http://www.ustream.tv/channel/theweatherspace-news

Lots of ads here
 
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  • #159
According to Polish news sites it went down somewhere near Okotoks in Canada.

But we will not know for sure till Evo gets on line.
 
  • #161
OK move along folks, there's nothing to see. It just fell on Canada, that's all.
 
  • #162
Last I heard, it was in the Pac ocean.
 
  • #163
Uh oh - Evo pm'd me last night saying she was leaving on a last minute cruise to Alaska! And I haven't heard from her since!
 
  • #164
Last night I kept thinking it may be bye bye Ivan. I walked out into the pasture and sat down near the creek, on a spot that allowed for the best view of the SW sky. As I sat alone in the dark, I began to consider that we've had a bear on the property recently [a first as far as we know], and I was sitting about twenty feet from the one place that might make a good den if the bear is actually living on the property. I've been walking around here in the dark for twenty years, often without a flashlight, but last night I felt a sense of relief as I walked back to my office.
 
  • #165
russ_watters said:
Uh oh - Evo pm'd me last night saying she was leaving on a last minute cruise to Alaska! And I haven't heard from her since!
I guess I can take my tin foil hat off now. Who says these things don't work?

Ivan, walking around in the dark among bears is a bad idead, bad.
 
  • #166
Evo said:
I guess I can take my tin foil hat off now. Who says these things don't work?

Just don't get rid of it. You may need it again.

[PLAIN]http://www.esa.int/images/Bee-Hive-6_L.jpg
 
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  • #167
[PLAIN]http://icanhascheezburger.files.wordpress.com/2011/09/funny-pictures-star-light-star-bright-first-star-i-see-tonight-i-wish-i-may-i-wish-i-might.jpg
 
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  • #168
lisab said:
[PLAIN]http://icanhascheezburger.files.wordpress.com/2011/09/funny-pictures-star-light-star-bright-first-star-i-see-tonight-i-wish-i-may-i-wish-i-might.jpg[/QUOTE]OMG! That's fantastic!
 
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  • #169
I tried to find a clip of Rick's funeral, from Northern Exposure, and was going to post it, carefully edited, as Evo's funeral, but that clip is impossible to find!

For those who weren't Northern Exposure fans, poor Rick was killed by a satellite strike. Unfortunately, special modifications were needed for the casket because Rick and the satellite had "fused and become one".

... As the unusually-shaped casket rolls into the church, antennae sticking out in all directions, the funeral attendees do their best to hold it back but soon break out in riotous laughter...
 
  • #170
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=73vw4TPgPAw

Not that I ever seen Northern Exposure. But it wasn't really hard to find :-p
 
  • #171
BYE EVO!

@Lisab, that is the funniest thing I've seen in the last hour! :smile: :smile: :smile:
 
  • #172
Borek said:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=73vw4TPgPAw

Not that I ever seen Northern Exposure. But it wasn't really hard to find :-p

Too funny! If you look at the date, this was uploaded after I tried to find it. I guess I wasn't the only one reminded of Rick's funeral by the rogue satellite.
 
  • #173
Evo said:
I guess I can take my tin foil hat off now. Who says these things don't work?

Ivan, walking around in the dark among bears is a bad idead, bad.

dlgoff said:
Just don't get rid of it. You may need it again.

[PLAIN]http://www.esa.int/images/Bee-Hive-6_L.jpg[/QUOTE]

Speaking of which, Dead German Satellite Will Fall to Earth This Week

Bye, bye Evo ... again.
 
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  • #174
Is there a site to track the path?

Predicted to hit Oct 21-23rd. End of the World is Oct 21st according to Harold Camping.
 
  • #175
Evo said:
Is there a site to track the path?

Predicted to hit Oct 21-23rd. End of the World is Oct 21st according to Harold Camping.

Maybe it's going to fall on Harold Camping :eek:!
 
  • #176
lisab said:
Maybe it's going to fall on Harold Camping :eek:!
I vote for Westboro Baptist Church, Topeka, KS.
 
  • #177
Astronuc said:
I vote for Westboro Baptist Church, Topeka, KS.
I second that. You must have seen the recent rebroadcast of http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Most_Hated_Family_in_America" ? I couldn't tolerate watching the entire program.

Even though I live within ~20 miles from them; bring on the space junk.
 
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  • #178
Holy Crap, its the Satellite.
Lisa,

Did you find that or add the text yourself ? Cute...

Rhody...
 
  • #179
lisab said:
Maybe it's going to fall on Harold Camping :eek:!

Well, wouldn't he just be insufferably smug to be proven right! :biggrin:
 
  • #180