U.S. SATELLITE “UARS” FALLS FROM THE SKY

 

NASA’S UARS Satellite and the U.S satellite Number 21701 launched in 12 September 1991 inside STS -48 falls back to Earth from the sky. NASA officials don’t know exactly where it will fall until about two hours before it enters the Earth’s atmosphere. Usually, satellites and payload modules disintegrate into smaller pieces as they enter the atmosphere, and the danger to people is not as high as one might imagine. 

 

 

The Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite, shown in this conceptual image, was launched in 1991 by space shuttle Discovery. The 35-foot-long, 15-foot-diameter UARS was decommissioned on December 14, 2005. The nearly 12,500-pound (5,668-kilogram) satellite will fall over a stretch of land more than 500 miles (804 kilometers) long somewhere between northern Canada and southern South America, said NASA officials. 

 

NASA expects the UARS to re-enter Earth's atmosphere in late September or early October but does not have a clear idea of where the satellite will fall until two hours before it enters the Earth’s atmosphere.
REUTERS/NASA/Handout

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