The out of commission Upper Atmospheric Research (UAR) satellite is in an orbit that is slowly decaying, and it is inching ever closer to earth. The 6.5 ton satellite is projected by NASA to enter the upper reaches of the earth’s atmosphere and start to burn up some time late Friday. Chances of the debris hitting anyone person is quite small. However, there is a possibility that some populated areas will be affected. In addition, expect a display of multiple fireballs streaking across the sky as the debris burns up upon entering the earth’s atmosphere.
NASA projects that the UAR spacecraft may spread 26 chunks of debris across a 500 mile corridor that stretches anywhere from Canada, Northern Europe to the southern tip of Africa. Much of the projected crash site is over water, so there is a good chance that the debris will fall over the ocean. However, since the debris path may be large, airline and general aviation pilots will need to be on the lookout for the fiery chunks as they crash to the earth.
The UAR satellite was first launched in 1991 from the space shuttle discovery, and its mission was to study the upper reaches of the earths atmosphere. The UAR mission recorded ozone levels, as well as other chemical compounds. The UAR mission ended in 2005.
NASA projects the the odds of any of the debris falling and striking any one person is about 1 in 3200. Since there are billions of people living beneath the projected path of the satellite, your individual chances of being struck by the falling craft is quite remote. You would multiple those 1 in 3200 chances by several billion people! But, you can lessen your chance of getting hit by using any number of satellite trackers available on the Internet to keep abreast of the UAR spacecraft. Keep an eye on the satellite tracker on Friday, and if UAR appears to be headed in your direction, the get ready to take cover! One such site that shows real time tracking of the UAR space craft is Heavens-Above.
Source: http://nasa.gov