Which satellite is falling to earth

Since the late s, pieces of space debris have fallen to Earth regularly and are viewed with increasing concern. But for anyone falling foul of the extremely long odds, the consequences would be truly disastrous. It was just a quirk of fate that Cosmos did not land on Toronto or Quebec City, where the radioactive fallout would have necessitated a large-scale evacuation.

In , pieces of debris from a Russian satellite narrowly missed a Chilean passenger plane flying between Santiago and Auckland. As we send more objects into space, the chances of a calamitous crash-landing will only increase. Read more: Two satellites just avoided a head-on smash. How close did they come to disaster? International law sets out a compensation regime that would apply in many circumstances of damage on Earth, as well as when satellites collide in space. This means that as we launch satellites to space we must consider how they will be removed at the end of their lives, or else the skies will be filled with old, defunct spacecraft at risk of collision, explosion, and the near-certain creation of vast amounts of space debris.

In this infographic from ESA and UNOOSA , find out how long it would take satellites at different altitudes to naturally fall back to Earth, and what must be done to responsibly dispose of them at the end of their lives. The estimated 8, tons of objects that humans have left in space are becoming a danger. Near misses are common these days. But so far, there has been just one major collision: In American satellite Iridium 33 and Cosmos , a Russian satellite, crashed , destroying both over northern Siberia.

Since that time, no action has been taken. Meanwhile, in late April the FCC voted to require more disclosures from satellite operators seeking licenses but declined to introduce any new laws governing the removal of orbital debris. According to experts, the problem is projected to get worse. By as many as 1, satellites could be launching each year.

The number of satellites orbiting Earth is projected to quintuple over the next decade. Astroscale, one of the few companies whose mission is to clean up such space debris, is leading the charge to clean up our space pathways and avoid collisions among the objects that humans recently have left in space.

The JAXA mission plans to complete its first phase by the end of IE 11 is not supported. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. Share this —.