German Satellite Expected to Fall to Earth

(NewsCore) - A German research satellite is expected to fall to Earth this weekend, but scientists said Saturday they still cannot predict where it will land.

As many as 30 pieces of the Roentgen Satellite (ROSAT) could plummet to Earth on Saturday or Sunday, according to the German Aerospace Center (DLR), which has been tracking the junked spacecraft.

"When the spacecraft re-enters the atmosphere at a speed of approximately 17,398 miles (28,000 km) per hour, the X-ray observatory will break up into fragments, some of which will burn up by the extreme heat," the DLR said.

The largest single fragment that could survive and hurtle towards ground is the telescope's mirror, which may weigh up to 3,748 lbs (1.8 tons).

Because of the Earth's orbit and solar activity, scientists said they cannot predict exactly when or where the ROSAT will land.

Most of the pieces will land near the craft, but "isolated fragments could fall to Earth in a 50 mile (80 km) wide path along the track," the DLR said.

ROSAT, which was built with British and American help, made many discoveries over the 21 years it orbited Earth, but officials announced in February that they were losing control of the satellite.

Experts said the chance of a person being injured by the falling debris is one in 2,000, higher than the predicted one in 3,200 chance of being hit by space junk from NASA's Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite, or UARS, which fell to Earth last month.

UARS crashed in the Pacific Ocean -- roughly halfway between Australia and Hawaii -- on Sept. 24, but no one was reported injured by the falling debris.

Read more: German Aerospace Center