Good! The Newsletter finally arrived with details concerning the satellite collision of Feb 10:
Space Weather News for Feb 12, 2009
COLLIDING SATELLITES: Experts are calling it an "unprecedented event." Two large satellites have collided in Earth orbit. Kosmos 2251 crashed into Iridium 33 on Tuesday, Feb 10, approximately 800 km over northern Siberia; both were destroyed. The resulting clouds of debris contain more than 500 fragments, significantly increasing the orbital debris population at altitudes where the collision occurred.
The Air Force Space Surveillance Radar is monitoring the clouds as they pass over the radar facility in Texas. We, in turn, are monitoring signals from the radar and you may be able to hear debris "pings" by tuning in to our live audio feed.
This is a story that will unfold in the days ahead as researchers study the evolution of the debris clouds and piece together the details of the collision.
Stay tuned to Spaceweather.com for full coverage.
Showing posts with label Air Force Space Surveillance Radar Texas. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Air Force Space Surveillance Radar Texas. Show all posts
Dec 21, 2008
Solstice Meteor Shower Dec 22, 2008
~Image: drawing Snowy Path, jc 2008~ because many folks are walking snowy paths right now.
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And now I turn you over to the:
Space Weather News for Dec 21, 2008
URSID METEORS: Earth is passing through a stream of debris from comet 8P/Tuttle and this is causing the annual Ursid meteor shower. Forecasters expect the Ursids to peak on Dec 22 with 8 to 10 meteors per hour flying out of the constellation Ursa Minor (the Little Dipper) not far from the *North Star.
The display is usually mild, but outbursts of Ursids occasionally surprise observers with rates many times normal. The last time this happened was in 2006. Standing outdoors to watch Ursids in December can be a chilling experience. So why not stay inside and listen?
Spaceweather.com is broadcasting live audio from the Air Force Space Surveillance Radar in Texas. When a meteor passes over the facility--"ping"--there is an echo. Because the Ursid radiant is circumpolar (always up) over the radar, the echoes may be heard at any hour, night or day.
Tune in to SpaceWeather to try the audio feed, which can support 1000 simultaneous listeners.
UNIQUE CHRISTMAS GIFT: For less than the cost of a night at the movies, you can give someone the heavens for Christmas. Send them a gift subscription to Spaceweather PHONE: SpaceWeatherPhone.
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* The North Star is now Polaris; keywords: an emotional or nurturing mission; pathfinder potential.
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