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ESA closely monitored the reentry on 24 September of the UARS observatory satellite. The Agency's Space Debris Office worked with NASA and international partners in a coordinated prediction and risk-assessment exercise.
NASA's non-operational Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS) reentered Earth's atmosphere on 24 September 2011 between 05:23 and 07:09 CEST. The precise reentry time and location of debris impacts from the 5.6-tonne satellite have not been determined. No injuries or damage have been reported. Since the beginning of the space age, there has been no confirmed report of an injury resulting from reentering space objects |
This conceptual image shows the Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS), launched on 15 September 1991 by the space shuttle Discovery. Originally designed for a three-year mission, UARS measured chemical compounds found in the ozone layer, wind and temperature in the stratosphere and the energy input from the Sun. Together, these measurements helped define the role of Earth's upper atmosphere in climate and climate variability. The 35-ft-long, 15-ft-diameter UARS was decommissioned on 14 December 2005 and underwent a destructive reentery during the night of 23/24 September 2011 |
satelite - uars
