zzdcar
Home
/
Reviews
/
Beyond Cars
/
You Have a 1 in 2,467 Chance of Being Hit by a Satellite Today
You Have a 1 in 2,467 Chance of Being Hit by a Satellite Today-May 2024
2024-02-19 EST 22:13:49

A render of the Nasa satellite that will fall back to Earth today.

When , it’s launched up there with a mission to do and a time frame in which to complete it in. Usually, they have enough fuel on board for the length of the mission, or are for as long as they need to be up there. Once the mission is over, until they fall out of orbit or can be cleaned up, and today one retired satellite is scheduled to come crashing back to Earth.

, the Reuven Ramaty High Energy Solar Spectroscopic Imager (RHESSI) satellite has been studying the surface of the sun since 2002. Over the course of its 16-year mission, the satellite observed solar flares and other ejections from our closest star, helping scientists understand how these powerful bursts of energy are created.

However, that mission ended almost five years ago, and the RHESSI was decommissioned in 2018 when it ran into issues with its communication equipment. Since then, it has just been stuck floating in orbit, that are currently drifting above the Earth.

Now, the 660-pound satellite, which is when it has its solar panels fully extended, will re-enter the Earth’s atmosphere for the first time since it was launched into space on the back of a Pegasus XL rocket.

A photo of the sun taken by Nasa.

The RHESSI satellite is expected to re-enter the atmosphere at 9:30 p.m. Eastern time today (April 19th), but NASA warns that that time could vary by plus or minus 16 hours. Meaning we could spot it overhead anytime between now and 1:30 p.m. Eastern time tomorrow.

In the process, NASA expects the and turned into dust by our atmosphere. However, the agency warned that “some components are expected to survive reentry.”

, the risk of anyone on Earth being harmed by a piece of the satellite sits at around 1 in 2,467. And while that’s a very small chance, it does mean that today you’re more likely to get hit by a satellite than you are to get killed by a shark, which .

You’re also more likely to be hit by a piece of the satellite than you are to be hit by a car, the chances of which here in the U.S. . So, you be careful out there.

Comments
Welcome to zzdcar comments! Please keep conversations courteous and on-topic. To fosterproductive and respectful conversations, you may see comments from our Community Managers.
Sign up to post
Sort by
Show More Comments
Beyond Cars
2023 Zero DSR/X: The Bike Of The Future, But Not Our Future
2023 Zero DSR/X: The Bike Of The Future, But Not Our Future
The world, in 2023, is cyberpunk. We’ve got the , the , and the that keeps the and the . But in cyberpunk media, people are always riding . Why are we stuck with the same bikes we’ve always had? , it seems, wants to address this grievous wrong....
May 6, 2025
String Of Boeing Failures Continues With 737-800 Flight Turning Back With Cracked Cockpit Windshield
String Of Boeing Failures Continues With 737-800 Flight Turning Back With Cracked Cockpit Windshield
In the wake of recent major , including , , and the debacle that was , it isn’t a good time for further failures by the company. that would , an unrelated 737-800 with a cracked windshield, became international news this weekend. The flight took off from Sapporo-New Chitose...
May 6, 2025
Marshmallow Treats Ended Up On The Royal Air Force's No-Fly List
Marshmallow Treats Ended Up On The Royal Air Force's No-Fly List
Over in the United Kingdom, there’s a certain dessert known as a “teacake” — or, as a British friend kindly informed me, it’s more accurately known as a “Tunnock” in Scotland. Basically, the food in question for this particular story are actually a cookie base topped with marshmallow, coated...
May 6, 2025
Aircraft Touch Tips During Blizzard At Japanese Airport
Aircraft Touch Tips During Blizzard At Japanese Airport
As at , its port side wing the starboard vertical stabilizer of bound for Hong Kong. This comes at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport, and . “Our aircraft, which was stationary at the time with no customers nor crew onboard, was struck by a Korean Air A330 which was taxiing past,”...
May 6, 2025
Crystal Chunks Are Bursting Through The Road In China
Crystal Chunks Are Bursting Through The Road In China
A video of what looks like quartz breaking through the surface of a is making the rounds on . I don’t get over there much, being suspicious of the Chinese over concerns of it spying on its users, as the reports. OK, fine. Actually, I just don’t get the humor...
May 6, 2025
Deadliest Train In America Kills 3 People In 2 Separate Collisions At The Same Crossing
Deadliest Train In America Kills 3 People In 2 Separate Collisions At The Same Crossing
operate between Orlando and Miami and hold the unwelcome distinction of being both the first intra-city high speed rail in the U.S. and the , by far. After three people died at a single grade crossing in two separate incidents last week it seems the feds are finally perking...
May 6, 2025
Copyright 2023-2025 - www.zzdcar.com All Rights Reserved