Incoming! Tiangong-1 space station will fall to Earth tonight – TheLiberal.ie – Our News, Your Views

Incoming! Tiangong-1 space station will fall to Earth tonight





The out of control Chinese space station Tiangong-1 is expected to fall to Earth tonight.

The 40-feet long craft, which malfunctioned in 2016 and entered a decaying orbit soon after, will re-enter Earth’s atmosphere at some point between 11pm and 5am UK time.

Most of Tiangong is expected to burn up on re-entry, though about 10 percent of the craft may withstand the enormous temperatures created by friction and reach Earth’s surface.

Agencies tracking the station say that the fall zone is somewhere between 43 degrees north and 43 degrees south of the equator, a huge area that covers entire continents.

Watch the skies tonight!

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