Debris From Russian Mars Probe to Drop to Earth on Jan. 15
This year, 2012, will begin with more space debris entering into the Earth’s atmosphere and finding its way onto the planet’s surface.
Fragments from a failed Russian space probe are expected to fall to Earth on Jan. 15, according to experts. This unmanned probe called Phobos-Ground, was launched Nov. 9 for a 2 ½ year mission that reportedly failed because it got stuck in Earth’s orbit.
The probe was supposed to journey to the Mars moon and collect soil samples to take back to Earth. But it never made it and is now falling back down to where it came from.
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As the probe’s orbit began to deteriorate, experts predicted that it would return to the Earth’s surface between late December and late February. The Jan. 15 prediction came from a spokesman for the air and space defense troops recently.
Like most defunct space probe’s, most of the remaining parts are expected to burn up in the Earth’s atmosphere upon re-entry while the rest will continue their plunge to the planet’s surface. Other factors could still change the date predicted and Defense Ministry troops are monitoring changes in the probe’s orbit, according to Russian state news agencies who quoted Alexei Zolotukin.
Phobos-Ground weighs in at 13.2 metric tons and most of its weight consists of highly toxic fuel. This fuel is now frozen, according to experts who also added that some could survive the plummet to Earth. If it remains in liquid form, it will likely combust from the heat of re-entering Earth’s atmosphere.
A similar incident occurred in Sept. 2011 when UARS, a defunct NASA satellite made its plunge onto the Earth’s surface. No parts from that spacecraft affected any human being upon landing.
Steve Cole of NASA’s Office of Communications in Washington, D.C., told The Christian Post in Sept. that these incidents are quite common and nothing to be alarmed about.
