European Satellite Set to Crash on Earth in 6 Days, Mystery Location

The European Space Agency (ESA) has announced plans to deliberately bring down a defunct satellite, the European Remote Sensing 2 (ERS-2), back to Earth, with the exact crash location currently unknown.

Launched in April 1995 for Earth observation purposes, ERS-2 concluded its mission in September 2011. Together with its counterpart, ERS-1, it provided critical data on Earth’s land, oceans, and polar regions and was instrumental in disaster monitoring globally.

The ESA has tentatively scheduled the satellite’s re-entry for 5:26 pm ET on February 19, acknowledging a potential error margin of about 1.5 days due to unpredictable solar activity that impacts the density of Earth’s atmosphere and, consequently, the satellite’s descent.

Initiated in the summer of 2011, the ESA undertook 66 re-orbiting maneuvers on ERS-2, aiming to deplete its remaining fuel and lower its orbit from 488 miles to approximately 356 miles. This strategy reduces the likelihood of collisions and accelerates orbital decay, ensuring re-entry within 15 years.

Described by the ESA as Europe’s most advanced Earth-observation satellite of its time, ERS-2 originally weighed 5,547 pounds. Post-fuel depletion, its weight has decreased to about 5,057 pounds. These efforts were part of a broader initiative to mitigate collision risks and guarantee the satellite’s safe atmospheric re-entry.