Here’s something you don’t see every day: an American and Russian satellite have had a space crash.
The Iridium communications satellite and a Russian satellite collided Tuesday 491 miles (790kms) over northern Siberia, creating a cloud of wreckage, officials have reported.
The Johnson Space Center in Houston reported that “The U.S. space surveillance network detected a large number of debris from both objects” believed to be at least 600 pieces.
The Russian satellite is believed to be Cosmos 2251, a communications relay station launched in 1993 that has been non-operational for around 10 years.
The International Space Station (ISS) does not appear to be threatened by the debris, officials said, but it’s not known yet whether there may be a risk to other satellites.
Iridium said in a statement that “Although this event has minimal impact on Iridium’s service, the company is taking immediate action to address the loss.” Iridium offers a global satellite phone and communications service.
The Iridium vessel is owned by a business? So why the USA vs. Russia cold war tone?
i calculate that the 900-kilogram Kosmos 2251 satellite collided with the 560-kilogram Iridium 7 satellite at 16:59 GMT, 10th February, over Siberia, roughly 65.8 N, 122.7 E.
Limits are more than calculus lessons for nerds.
Iridium was a spy program with China. It was over Russian space anyway, so no cash.
Will this cloud of debris lead to a chain reaction of bringing down all other satellites?
Cosmic Dominos. Oh noes!