Russian officials say they still have no firm information where a failed Mars moon probe plummeted to Earth, the day after it went down.
The unmanned Phobos-Ground probe fell Sunday after being stuck in Earth's orbit for two months.
The $170 million craft was one of the heaviest and most toxic pieces of space junk ever to crash to Earth . . ..
Showing posts with label Phobos-Grunt Probe. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Phobos-Grunt Probe. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Monday, January 16, 2012
Doomed Phobos-Grunt Probe Crashes into Pacific, Say Russians
MOSCOW — A failed probe that was designed to travel to a moon of Mars but got stuck in Earth orbit has crashed into the Pacific Ocean, Russian officials said Sunday.
The unmanned Phobos-Grunt probe was one of the heaviest and most toxic space derelicts ever to crash to Earth, but there were no reports of injury or damage. There's a good chance that no one saw the spacecraft's fiery plunge.
"Phobos-Grunt fragments have crashed down in the Pacific Ocean," the RIA-Novosti news service quoted Alexei Zolotukhin, a spokesman for Russia's aerospace defense forces, as saying. The debris zone was said to be 775 miles (1,250 kilometers) west of Wellington Island in the South Pacific. Re-entry was estimated to occur at about 12:45 p.m. ET, based on the data received by the Russians.
The unmanned Phobos-Grunt probe was one of the heaviest and most toxic space derelicts ever to crash to Earth, but there were no reports of injury or damage. There's a good chance that no one saw the spacecraft's fiery plunge.
"Phobos-Grunt fragments have crashed down in the Pacific Ocean," the RIA-Novosti news service quoted Alexei Zolotukhin, a spokesman for Russia's aerospace defense forces, as saying. The debris zone was said to be 775 miles (1,250 kilometers) west of Wellington Island in the South Pacific. Re-entry was estimated to occur at about 12:45 p.m. ET, based on the data received by the Russians.