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Things keep fallling out of the sky

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pscot Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sun Oct-16-11 07:07 PM
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Things keep fallling out of the sky



The ROSAT X-ray observatory, launched in 1990 by NASA and managed for years by the German Aerospace Center (DLR), will return to Earth within the next two weeks. Current best estimates place the re-entry between Oct. 22nd and 24th over an unknown part of Earth. Although ROSAT is smaller and less massive than UARS, which grabbed headlines when it re-entered on Sept. 24th, more of ROSAT could reach the planet's surface. This is because the observatory is made of heat-tolerant materials. According to a DLR study, as many as 30 individual pieces could survive the fires of re-entry. The largest single fragment would likely be the telescope's mirror, which is very heat resistant and may weigh as much as 1.7 tons.

ROSAT is coming, but it's not here yet. On Oct. 13th, Marco Langbroek photographed the observatory still in orbit over Leiden, the Netherlands
http://www.spaceweather.com/
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Angry Dragon Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sun Oct-16-11 07:38 PM
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1. Chicken Little was correct
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