Space Litter To Hit Earth Tomorrow 443
A refrigerator-sized tank of toxic ammonia, tossed from the international space station last year, is expected to hit earth tomorrow afternoon or evening. The 1,400-pound object was deliberately jettisoned — by hand — from the ISS's robot arm in July 2007. Since the time of re-entry is uncertain, so is the location. "NASA expects up to 15 pieces of the tank to survive the searing hot temperatures of re-entry, ranging in size from about 1.4 ounces (40 grams) to nearly 40 pounds (17.5 kilograms). ... [T]he largest pieces could slam into the Earth's surface at about 100 mph (161 kph). ...'If anybody found a piece of anything on the ground Monday morning, I would hope they wouldn't get too close to it,' [a NASA spokesman] said."
Could/Should we push all the junk back at earth? (Score:3, Interesting)
Assuming a capable laser system, would a gentle laser push towards earth be a good way to clean up space junk? Would away from earth be better?
A laser which would simply annihilate the junk would be admittedly cooler, but could de-orbit be accomplished with much less power?
Re:"toxic ammonia"? (Score:5, Interesting)
I've yet to meet any non-Scandinavian that likes it, though apparently they sell they stuff in the Netherlands and Germany too.
Did anyone else think.... (Score:5, Interesting)
about how cool this is?
First, here is NASA being about as open about it as they can get. We dumped a toxic container out, and it might hit your house or spouse or both. Possible reason for joy?
Second, 50 years ago there was probably only two people on the entire planet that could have thought such a safety announcement would be put out with all the fame and glory of a news item about a fender bender in the WalMart parking lot!
I kind of look forward to news reports like this:
Space weather warning: Launch News- Today in the Southern Americas regions, the likelihood of debris showers is at Threat Level Orange. Expected drop zone is 15 miles off the coast of Peru as the StarLiner "Moses" launches for Alpha Centauri.
Between the hours of 13:00 GMT and 23:50 GMT, some pieces of the launch platform are expected to survive the searing heat of re-entry. It is possible for pieces up to 57 kilograms to reach the Earth's surface. Please contact the local constabulary for concerns about livestock. Normal insurance claim processes apply.
You all wanted flying cars. I want star cruisers and Earth 2.0.
A tinfoil hat moment... (Score:4, Interesting)
...'If anybody found a piece of anything on the ground Monday morning, I would hope they wouldn't get too close to it,' [a NASA spokesman] said."
Hmm...and why might that be? Some stray ammonia molecules might still be clinging to said pieces? I read somewhere (probably here) that meteorites are actually cool to the touch if they arrive on the ground intact. I don't recall pieces of Columbia starting fires upon impact.
So if temperature isn't the issue, why would a NASA spokesman make such an inane statement?
An important detail (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Landfall projection? (Score:4, Interesting)
It's rare but being hit by metorites *does* happen. I can't find a recorded instance since 2002 (although there's a nice picture of a destroyed car [nasa.gov] from 1992 which probably doesn't count as it didn't hit a person.
Of course by the time it hits someone it's normally little more than a very hot pebble, and causes little more than some burning.
If something the size of a fridge hit you you'd feel a little bit more than a burning sensation!
Re:clue ? (Score:3, Interesting)
TFA says the largest piece could be about 40 pounds and hit at 100 mph. That wouldn't dent your car, it would totally destroy it.
If you're driving along a highway at 100mph, I have a hard time imaging that hitting a 40 pound child would totally destroy a car. Serious damage, sure.
Re:Cloudy (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:An important detail (Score:2, Interesting)
Why didn't they vent the ammonia into space?
Would it have frozen too quickly, so exit valve would become clogged with ammonia ice? Or would it present a danger to the space station?
Re:Cloudy (Score:3, Interesting)
The ammonia could probably be waste from reclamation of water from urine.
Re:"toxic ammonia"? (Score:2, Interesting)
I've yet to meet any non-Scandinavian that likes it, though apparently they sell they stuff in the Netherlands and Germany too.
I was born and bred in Australia of Anglo-Saxon parentage. I love Dutch Salted Liquorice (Dobbel Zoot preferred). That sal ammoniac just adds that little extra. Ammonium Chloride (aka Sal Ammoniac, aka smelling salts) used to be an integral part of first aid kits until fairly recently, BTW.
Re:Cloudy (Score:2, Interesting)
The difference is that I am in control of the car (most of the time, anyway).
The other difference is that you're on a road full of other cars. The Earth has an area of 510,072,000 km^2. There is a human population of about 6,700,000,000. That's about 13 people every square kilometer, or one person ever 76000 square meters. NASA does much more damage than this is expected to do just by wasting money. If you don't think that kills anyone, I'd like to point out that there's a strong correlation between lifespan and income.
What kills you matters... (Score:4, Interesting)
Have a look at Professer John Adams' [wikipedia.org] analysis of people's understanding, assessment amd reaction to various sources of risk... He's spent a lifetime studying the whole field of "risk", and his idea of risk amplification seems to be gaining traction within the field:
http://www.socialaffairsunit.org.uk/blog/archives/000512.php [socialaffairsunit.org.uk]
Re:Cloudy (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:"toxic ammonia"? (Score:2, Interesting)
Winston Churchill wanted to drop candy laced with ammonia from Lancaster bombers on Germany, but the people at the War Ministry thought it was a crazy plan with no strategic benefit.
Re:Cloudy (Score:3, Interesting)
Actually, throwing it backwards would be the worst. We're talking about orbits here, so it will do a loop around the planet and smack you in the face.
You would want to push something off to a different altitude, so that your orbits do not cross at all. In this particular case, they would have pushed it down toward Earth.
I'm more than a little concerned about what happens if this debris falls ON something, you know, like one of the 6 billion humans that inhabit this wretched mound of dirt. I'm secretly wishing it would crash right in the middle of the pentagon (tee-hee!)... just to see what kind of bullshit terrorist propaganda they'd make up to explain it.
Re:Cloudy (Score:3, Interesting)
Two trains leave the station at the same time, heading in opposite directions.
If train A is moving at 80 mph, and train B is moving at 50 mph, why the hell are you wearing that stupid looking hat ?
What happens if it hits my house? (Score:3, Interesting)
What goes up; goes down. (Score:2, Interesting)
We put one piece of this stuff up on average per day.
Guess what, one piece of this stuff comes back per day.
In the entire history of the U.S., Russian, Euro, and other space programs,
there have been only a few minor incidents and one or two sort of big deal
incidents but no REAL harm.
Crashing space junk makes good sensationalistic news, but resultswise,
the earth is really really big, its mostly water, and most of the rest
is not used by people, and even the parts used by people are mostly not
damagible targets.
don't worry about it.
oh, btw, amnonia(?), once that tank breaks open in the stratosphere, it
is no longer a threat to anyone.