Big ass satellite due to crash to Earth this weekend

[RJDiogenes]

^^ Yes, I love that movie.

^^ The second idea would be more theoretically feasible. Actually, a (possibly motile) space-based laser would probably be more practical since there would be no atmospheric diffusion.

Motile? Do we really want powerful lasers moving around of their own volition? Next thing you know, they'd be taking contracts out on Sarah Connor rather than obsolete satellites with big butts and no sense of civic pride.

Well, not of their own volition. Preferably... I would be in control.

I pity whoever is dating Maggie O'Connell.

Thanks. I'm glad somebody got it.

 

[RJDiogenes]

And, apparently, it still hasn't come down and the US is now at risk. If it destroys my car, will the government buy me a new one?

 

[M'Sharak]

More updates & stuff.

From Spaceflight Now:

Satellite's fiery return now expected overnight tonight


NASA's decommissioned Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite, out of gas and out of control, is not descending toward re-entry as rapidly as expected, officials say, likely delaying the satellite's kamikaze plunge to Earth by a few hours to late Friday or early Saturday. Experts expect more than two dozen chunks of debris to survive re-entry and hit the ground in a 500-mile-long footprint somewhere along the satellite's orbital track.

But given the bus-size 6.3-ton's satellite's trajectory and the vast areas of ocean and sparsely populated areas UARS passes over, experts say it is unlikely any falling debris will result in injuries or significant property damage. Additional radar tracking is required to pinpoint when -- and where -- the satellite will make its final descent.

"As of 10:30 a.m. EDT on Sept. 23, 2011, the orbit of UARS was 100 miles by 105 miles (160 km by 170 km)," NASA said in a brief update. "Re-entry is expected late Friday, Sept. 23, or early Saturday, Sept. 24, Eastern Daylight Time. Solar activity is no longer the major factor in the satellite's rate of descent. The satellite's orientation or configuration apparently has changed, and that is now slowing its descent.

Article continues...

.

Track it live: http://www.spaceflightnow.com/uars/status.html

.

NASA's latest update:

Update #11
Fri, 23 Sep 2011 04:30:46 PM GMT-0700


As of 7 p.m. EDT on Sept. 23, 2011, the orbit of UARS was 90 miles by 95 miles (145 km by 150 km). Re-entry is expected between 11 p.m. Friday, Sept. 23, and 3 a.m., Sept. 24, Eastern Daylight Time (3 a.m. to 7 a.m. GMT). During that time period, the satellite will be passing over Canada, Africa and Australia, as well as vast areas of the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian oceans. The risk to public safety is very remote.

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/uars/index.html



EDIT:

Just saw a picture taken of UARS as it was getting launched, 20 years ago this month. Click here and you can see it too.

 

[Darth Duck]

It's down.

Update #15
Sat, 24 Sep 2011 12:46:42 AM PDT


NASA’s decommissioned Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite fell back to Earth between 11:23 p.m. EDT Friday, Sept. 23 and 1:09 a.m. EDT Sept. 24. The Joint Space Operations Center at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California said the satellite penetrated the atmosphere over the Pacific Ocean. The precise re-entry time and location are not yet known with certainty.

Penetrated, hehe.

 

[Candlelight]

http://www.stuff.co.nz/science/5677797/Satellite-crashes-back-to-Earth

There were reports on Twitter of debris falling over Okotoks, a town south of Calgary in western Canada, most likely the remains of the Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite, or UARS, which had been in orbit for 20 years.
Scientists were unable to pinpoint the exact time and place where UARS would return to Earth due to the satellite's unpredictable tumbles as it plowed through the upper atmosphere. Re-entry was believed to have occurred between 3.45 and 4.45pm (today, NZ time).
Stretching 10.6 metres long and 4.5 metres in diameter, UARS was among the largest spacecraft to plummet uncontrollably through the atmosphere, although it is a slim cousin to Nasa's 75-tonnes skylab station, which crashed to Earth in 1979.
Russia's last space station, the 135-tonne Mir, crashed into the Pacific Ocean in 2001, but it was a guided descent.
Nasa now plans for the controlled re-entry of large spacecraft, but it did not when UARS was designed.

So an ocean landing... or Canada. It's always Canada...

 

[Candlelight]

Ah, now this is what I've been looking for:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44644208/ns/technology_and_science-science/#.Tn2aW091mpM

The good news is that if the satellite, or even just sizable chunks of it, did in fact slam into your house, you wouldn't need to sell your new space souvenir to pay for repairs. By international law, NASA would have to foot the bill.
Liability for damage caused by objects falling from space is regulated by the 1972 Convention on International Liability for Damage Caused by Space Objects, according to NASA public affairs officer Beth Dickey. When the U.S. signed the pact, it agreed to be "absolutely liable to pay compensation for damage caused by its space object on the surface of the Earth or to aircraft in flight." That goes if UARS, or anything else NASA has put into orbit, crashes down in Kansas, France or Zimbabwe.
The terms cover just about everything. In this case, "damage" is defined as loss of life, personal injury or other impairment of health; or loss of or damage to property of states or of persons, natural or juridical, or property of international intergovernmental organizations.
And the payout is fairly good. Again, quoting the treaty: "The compensation which the launching State shall be liable to pay for damage under this Convention shall be determined in accordance with international law and the principles of justice and equity, in order to provide such reparation in respect of the damage as will restore the person, natural or juridical, State or international organization on whose behalf the claim is presented to the condition which would have existed if the damage had not occurred."
One slight hitch in the treaty is that you have to present your claim no later than one year after the incident (or discovery of the damage). If you've got a bus-size satellite sitting in your living room, however, we suspect that satisfying this condition would not be an issue.

 

[Myasishchev]

And, apparently, it still hasn't come down and the US is now at risk. If it destroys my car, will the government buy me a new one?

Maybe; you could sue for negligence under the Federal Torts Claims Act. It might be difficult to meet the burden of demonstrating a breach of duty, however, because of the unlikelihood of your car getting hit in the first place and the steps the government did take to avoid it.

Comprehensive insurance might cover it anyway; you might have to argue that the satellite fits a definition of a vehicle.

Motile? Do we really want powerful lasers moving around of their own volition? Next thing you know, they'd be taking contracts out on Sarah Connor rather than obsolete satellites with big butts and no sense of civic pride.

It wouldn't need to be very powerful.

A space-based version would be more useful but strikes me as far more expensive. Also, a ground-based laser system that could double as an ASAT weapon that did not leave debris fields strikes me as a potentially interesting device.

 

[Alpha Romeo]

And, apparently, it still hasn't come down and the US is now at risk. If it destroys my car, will the government buy me a new one?

Maybe; you could sue for negligence under the Federal Torts Claims Act. It might be difficult to meet the burden of demonstrating a breach of duty, however, because of the unlikelihood of your car getting hit in the first place and the steps the government did take to avoid it.

Comprehensive insurance might cover it anyway; you might have to argue that the satellite fits a definition of a vehicle.

Motile? Do we really want powerful lasers moving around of their own volition? Next thing you know, they'd be taking contracts out on Sarah Connor rather than obsolete satellites with big butts and no sense of civic pride.

It wouldn't need to be very powerful.

A space-based version would be more useful but strikes me as far more expensive. Also, a ground-based laser system that could double as an ASAT weapon that did not leave debris fields strikes me as a potentially interesting device.

You missed the post above. You wouldn't have to sue there is already a law in place imposing liability.

 

[Myasishchev]

Oopsie.

 

[TorontoTrekker]

http://www.stuff.co.nz/science/5677797/Satellite-crashes-back-to-Earth

There were reports on Twitter of debris falling over Okotoks, a town south of Calgary in western Canada, most likely the remains of the Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite, or UARS, which had been in orbit for 20 years.
Scientists were unable to pinpoint the exact time and place where UARS would return to Earth due to the satellite's unpredictable tumbles as it plowed through the upper atmosphere. Re-entry was believed to have occurred between 3.45 and 4.45pm (today, NZ time).
Stretching 10.6 metres long and 4.5 metres in diameter, UARS was among the largest spacecraft to plummet uncontrollably through the atmosphere, although it is a slim cousin to Nasa's 75-tonnes skylab station, which crashed to Earth in 1979.
Russia's last space station, the 135-tonne Mir, crashed into the Pacific Ocean in 2001, but it was a guided descent.
Nasa now plans for the controlled re-entry of large spacecraft, but it did not when UARS was designed.

So an ocean landing... or Canada. It's always Canada...

So what was once UARS is now ours?