(The Telegraph) ~ NASA has
announced that a six-ton weather
satellite is set to fall out of
orbit, potentially raining debris
over four continents.
The $750 million Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite, also known as UARS, was set in a 155-mile-high orbit by STS-Discovery in 1991, is 35 feet long, 15 feet in diameter and weights almost 12,000 pounds. It was designed to operate for three years, however six of its ten instruments are still working. But the satellite ran out of fuel in 2005 and is set to breach the upper atmosphere within the next few weeks. In a new alert, issued this week, officials warned pieces could land in densely populated areas, including parts of Europe, North America, South America and Asia.
NASA admitted more than half a ton of metal from the satellite will survive re-entry as the majority of debris will burn up after entering Earth’s atmosphere. NASA claims the risk to public safety is “extremely small” but admits they’re “concerned” about the risk to billions of people when the satellite starts to de-orbit. NASA’s orbital debris chief Gene Stansbury said, “things have been re-entering ever since the dawn of the space age; to date nobody has has been injured by anything that’s re-entered. This does not mean we’re not concerned.”
A NASA spokesman added, “although the spacecraft will break into pieces during re-entry, not all of it will burn up in the atmosphere. The risk to public safety or property is extremely small, and safety is NASA’s top priority. It is too early to say exactly when UARS will enter and what geographic area maybe affected, but NASA is watching the satellite closely.” Scientists estimate the debris footprint will be about 500 miles long with a 1-in-3,200 chance that a satellite part could hit someone. The projected impact zone has also been narrowed to areas between 57º North and 57º South latitude.
UARS is currently being tracked by scientists at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas and the Joint Space Operations Center of the US Strategic Command at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California. Those observers rely on radar and other deep-space telescopes around the world, making more than 80,000 observations of space every day. According to the US Space Surveillance Network, which monitors space junk, there are more than 22,000 objects measuring four inches or more currently in orbit around the Earth. The International Space Station occasionally has to move out of the way of passing debris. The volume of abandoned rockets, shattered satellites and missile shrapnel in orbit has reached a tipping point and is now threatening the $250 billion space services industry, according to the US Defense Department’s interim Space Posture Review. Meanwhile, the National Academy of Sciences admitted that scientists had “lost control” of the space environment in a report released earlier this month.
Photo credit: NASA
Jack
Miller DENTON Mr. Johnson W. (Jack) Miller, II of Piedmont
School Rd., died Thursday, Aug. 4, 2011 at Randolph Hospital
in Asheboro. A funeral service was held at 4 p.m. Saturday,
August 6 at Lineberry United Methodist Church conducted by
the Rev. Kelly Creekmur. Burial followed in the Church
Cemetery. The family visited with friends Saturday the
church. Mr. Miller was born in Stanly County on Aug. 21,
1949 to Johnson Wilson Miller and Callie Watts Miller. He
was a graduate of UNC Charlotte and had worked as a
Sanitation Inspector with both the Cabarrus and Davidson
County Health Departments. He had also worked as an
assistant golf pro in Lexington. He was an Army veteran of
the Vietnam Conflict and was a member of the VFW and the DAV.
He was a Ham Radio Operator and was a member of the Carolina
Clowns where he used the name "Pokey". He is survived by his
wife, Patricia Hill Miller of the home; a sister, Linda
Wright and her husband Ed of Woodstock, Ga.; a nephew Allen
Wright; and two great nieces, Ashley and Amber. He is also
survived by his sisters-in-law, Faye Hill Vestal, Sandi H.
Hopkins and her husband, Wesley and Sue Hill and her
husband, Tommy Montgomery and Hill family nieces and
nephews. Memorials may be made to Hospice of Randolph, P.O.
Box 9, Asheboro, NC 27203 or Linberry United Methodist
Church Cemetery, c/o Linda Pearce, 2222 Piedmont School Rd.,
Denton, NC 27239 Online condolences may be sent to
LOCATION: Conveniently located in the
beautiful Cabarrus Arena & Events Center. 
OAKBORO
- Fred Thomas Smith, 82, of Oakboro, formerly of Kannapolis,
died Thursday, June 3, 2010, at Stanly Manor in Albemarle
following a period of declining health. He was born Feb. 6,
1928 in Alexander County son of the late Harry Lee and
Pansie Leola Ferguson Smith. He was a former member of
Centerview Baptist Church in Kannapolis and attended St.
Martin Lutheran Church in Albemarle. Mr. Smith was a veteran
of the U.S. Navy and had retired from the Merchant Marines
with 44 years of service. He had served in the Great Lakes
area for 35 years. Fred was known for his electronic
expertise and built and repaired computers. He was a well
known longtime ham radio operator and computer user. Funeral
services will be 2 p.m. Saturday, June 5, 2010 at Whitley's
Funeral Home Chapel conducted by Rev. Judy Copeland. The
family will receive friends at the funeral home one hour
prior to the funeral. At other times they will be at the
residence. Interment will follow in West Lawn Memorial Park,
China Grove. He is survived by his wife, Evelyn Crowell of
the Home, and a sister, Claudean Kluttz and husband, Hoy, of
Kannapolis. He was preceded in death by a sister, Maylene
Berryman and two brothers, James Grady Smith and Harvey Lee
Smith. Whitley's Funeral Home is serving the family of Mr.
Smith. Online condolences may be sent to
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