Updates GOCE Mission News

[ADSWNJ]

I may be wrong, but why do I get this gut feeling it headed for the USA?

Pretty small likelihood IMHO. Whilst the next couple of orbits do indeed go across the USA (south to north), there's a much greater amount of orbit not over the USA.

Plus the USA is a pretty big place, and this thing is only the size of a car. I guess there'll be more people getting injured in car accidents tonight than GOCE incidents.

 

[MaverickSawyer]

No further coverage of GOCE. Any further findings will be released via PR.

 

[Screamer7]

Lowest orbit so far...103 km and going up again, above Indonesia...speed 7.97 m/s

 

[DaveS]

Lowest orbit so far...103 km and going up again, above Indonesia...speed 7.97 m/s

Don't trust any trackers anymore. They all rely on TLEs so they're not up to date and can't account for drag increasing in real time. They're updated as new TLEs become available, so they can show something in orbit long after it is gone.

 

[ADSWNJ]

Don't trust any trackers anymore. They all rely on TLEs so they're not up to date and can't account for drag increasing in real time. They're updated as new TLEs become available, so they can show something in orbit long after it is gone.

Dammit ... I demand direct access to real-time radar and laser tracking systems .

 

[Screamer7]

Dammit ... I demand direct access to real-time radar and laser tracking systems .

LOL...

 

[MattBaker]

Dammit ... I demand direct access to real-time radar and laser tracking systems .

If 50%+1 of the next presidential election approve that...

"Screw that meeting with the British Prime Minister! I'm watching GOCE reenter."

 

[Thunder Chicken]

I wonder how much effect Typhoon Haiyan will have on the reentry during the final orbit. Haiyan is in the S. China Sea off Vietnam.

 

[N_Molson]

Dammit ... I demand direct access to real-time radar and laser tracking systems .

Plant one in your garden

Seriously, no way to point several amateur-sized antennas around the world at the thing and pinpoint it's position knowing the GPS coordiantes of each antenna and the direction of the signal, and networking the whole in real-time (yeah I know, this is easy to say... ) ?

 

[ADSWNJ]

Maybe someone in the NSA can give me a password to get into STRATCOM?

 

[MaverickSawyer]

Any word lately? Have we lost contact?

 

[Thunder Chicken]

Should know in a few minutes if it is down. Next (potential) pass at Troll coming up in a few minutes. If no pass, it's down.

 

[Quick_Nick]

Should know in a few minutes if it is down. Next (potential) pass at Troll coming up in a few minutes. If no pass, it's down.

It has basically already been guaranteed down. It's just unknown where.

"[00:50 UTC]: The re-entry window is now closed. With very high certainty, GOCE has re-entered by now. Pin-pointing the decay location and exact time is a process that requires some time."

 

[ADSWNJ]

http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Observing_the_Earth/GOCE/GOCE_gives_in_to_gravity

ESA confirmation of reentry and break-up around 00:00 UTC. End of another outstanding mission from the European Space Agency.

 

[Notebook]

BBC article:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-24894611

N.

 

[Quick_Nick]

Impact estimated off the southern tip of South America, not too far from Antarctica.
Edit: I should probably say entry interface rather than impact.

 

[MaverickSawyer]

 

[Evil_Onyx]

dammit almost picked the right spot. Farewell GOCE.

 

[astrosammy]

Very good. Visual confirmation of reentry from the Falklands!

https://twitter.com/Cheds23/status/399923984940032001/photo/1

 

[Notebook]

What a beauty, its as elegant as it comes back to Earth as it left it.

N.

BBC article relevant to astrosammy above:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-24907261