A further update on the satellite collision. It seems that that the debris will take a long time to decay and burn up, and there could be a risk of further collisions in a "chain-reaction" effect!
News clipping: Satellite collision creates copious space junk - space - 12 February 2009 - New Scientist.
News clipping: Satellite collision creates copious space junk - space - 12 February 2009 - New Scientist.
Two space satellites smashed into each other on Tuesday in an unprecedented orbital accident. Government agencies are still assessing the aftermath, but early radar measurements have detected hundreds of pieces of debris that could pose a risk to other spacecraft. As first reported by CBS News, a defunct Russian Cosmos satellite and a communication satellite owned by the US firm Iridium collided some 790 kilometres above northern Siberia on Tuesday. "This is the first time that two intact spacecraft have accidentally run into each other," says Nicholas Johnson, chief scientist of NASA's Orbital Debris Program Office in Houston, Texas.
This is a great article and would like to hear more from you.
Posted by: SatellitePrepaid | 22 April 2009 at 04:42 AM