UNDATED (WJON News) - It’s the stuff disaster movies are made of.
A satellite roughly the size of a rhinoceros is scheduled to make an uncontrolled re-entry to Earth on February 21st.
The European Space Agency ERS-2 satellite was launched in 1995 and has spent 30 years gathering information on the Earth’s surface, oceans, ice caps, and natural disasters.
The ESA says the risk to the public is very low, with most of the more than 5,000 pounds burned off in the atmosphere, and the rest likely landing in the ocean.
The satellite was deactivated in 2011 and ground control can’t control in decent.
Re-entry is estimated to occur at 6:19 pm Central Time Wednesday, with a 15-hour window of uncertainty.
ESA officials say this reentry highlights a bigger problem of space debris and its impact on Earth’s orbit and atmosphere. The agency is aiming for a “Zero Debris” future for space missions by 2030.
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