Greater Chance Two Satellites Collide Above Pittsburgh

NASA IRAS (13777)
Photo credit NASA

PITTSBURGH (Newsradio 1020 KDKA) - Two decommissioned satellites could possibly collide high above Pittsburgh on Wednesday afternoon and the chances of it happening have increased.

According to space debris tracker Leo Labs, a decommissioned telescope launched in 1983 and an experimental US payload launched in 1967 will pass close to each other at approximately 6:30 p.m.

Leo Labs says the probability of the two satellites colliding has increased from 1 in 100 to 1 in 20.

4/ Adjusting our calculations to account for larger object sizes (by increasing our combined Hard Body Radius from 5m to 10m), this yields an updated collision probability closer to 1 in 20.

— LeoLabs, Inc. (@LeoLabs_Space) January 29, 2020

While the chances the two collide are still “unlikely”, Leo Labs radars will track both satellites longer than planned to search for any new debris.  

The two satellites, a little under 560 above the earth, will pass within meters of each other at a rate of 9 miles per second.

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