German satellite set to crash to earth
- NewsCore
- October 11, 2011
A GERMAN research satellite has left its orbit and is set to crash to earth in the next few weeks, according to the country's space agency.
Scientists said pieces of the X-ray telescope ROSAT, which weighs almost three metric tonnes, could hit earth when it re-enters the atmosphere in the coming weeks, The Local (Germany) reported.
ROSAT, which was built with British and American help, made many discoveries over the 21 years it orbited earth, but officials announced in February they were losing control of the satellite.
The Cologne-based German Aerospace Centre (DLR) said it had not been able to communicate with ROSAT since the end of its last mission in 1999.
DLR now predicts 30 individual pieces weighing 1.6 metric tonnes (1.8 tons) in total, "may reach the surface of the earth" at the end of October or early November.
Experts said the chance of a person being injured by the falling debris is one in 2000, higher than the predicted one in 3200 chance of being hit by space junk from NASA's Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite, or UARS, which fell to earth last month.
UARS crashed in the Pacific Ocean - roughly halfway between Australia and Hawaii - on Sept. 24, but no one was reported injured by the falling debris.
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