Watch Out for Spy Satellite Debris Raining from the Sky

A bus-sized spy satellite, made by and for the U.S., has lost power and will crash down on Earth as early as February. Apparently, nobody knows if the satellite has been dead for a year or just a few days. (Great going, intelligence geeks.) The best part? According to AP, the only comment the National Security Council would make came from a flak who said, "Appropriate government agencies are monitoring the situation." Most experts agree the debris from the satellite will be minimal — far less than the space shuttle crash, and certainly less than what smashed into the Indian Ocean when the 78-ton abandoned space station Skylab smash-landed in 1979. (Thanks, Morgan!) [AP]

11:40 AM on Mon Jan 28 2008
By Annalee Newitz
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11 comments

Comments

StartingAces at 12:02 PM on 01/28/08
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The best estimate for an actual Earth impact of this thing that I'd heard, was about the size of a couch.
Ignatzybanjo at 12:15 PM on 01/28/08
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I love this story. I love how the satellite is "bus-sized." Is bus-sized destined to become the new Rhode Island--as in, "The iceberg, which is approximately the size of Rhode Island, broke dramatically off of the Ross Ice Shelf..."? There is so much bus-sized junk up there, you know. I love how this satellite "may" contain hazardous materials. I love NASA's satellite tracker. Finally, I love how this whole thing reminds me of the movie (not science fiction) Dogs in Space, in which Australia during the re-entry of Skylab is the setting. It was...if memory serves...Michael Hutchence's one and only foray onto the BIG screen.
Gyrus at 12:18 PM on 01/28/08
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If this isn't the most apt metaphor for the US, I don't know what is.
rmw66 at 12:54 PM on 01/28/08
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Wasn't this already an episode of "Max Headroom"?
Seth L at 01:45 PM on 01/28/08
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Get China to shoot it out of orbit.
Simpsons-Movie-ruled at 02:36 PM on 01/28/08
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Real life Cloverfeild Anyone?
Simpsons-Movie-ruled at 02:40 PM on 01/28/08
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@simpsons-movie-ruled: Damn it CloverFIELD
Darkweave at 05:24 PM on 01/28/08
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What would be cool is if the killer sat crashed into the building the Clover peeps were having their party at and killed them all thus saving us from the movie..
Eac_o_System at 05:37 PM on 01/28/08
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Space sh**.
Daniel Rutter at 08:06 PM on 01/28/08
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"Appropriate government agencies are monitoring the situation."

"These days those agencies are mainly staffed by Regent University graduates, who assure us that there's a 50% chance the satellite will harmlessly impact the sunless underside of our planet."
bonniegrrl at 01:41 AM on 01/30/08
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I blame Slusho entirely.