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Delta Rocket Crashes In Mongolia

Dr La writes "Two metal objects, one cylindrical and a smaller round one, crashed near Buren Soum in the Tuv province of Mongolia, in an empty field, on 19 February. They are parts of an American Delta II rocket stage (nr. 35939, 2009-052C) that launched the military STSS Demo 1 & 2 satellites in September 2009. Both articles linked above say that the larger of the two objects is 7.5 meters in diameter, but in this photo it looks more like 7.5 feet. It is marked with the serial number '02728.' (The military STSS program is intended for space-based detection and tracking of missiles.) In the months leading up to the February 19 orbital decay over Mongolia, the fall of the rocket stage was followed by amateur satellite trackers. Based on their final orbit determinations just hours before the decay, the decay must have occurred near 3:32 UTC on February 19."

15 of 53 comments (clear)

  1. How do you say... by zappepcs · · Score: 2, Funny

    Sanford and Son in Mongolian?

    1. Re:How do you say... by M1FCJ · · Score: 2, Informative

      I guess you mean "Steptoe and Son", the original.

  2. Decay happens over a period of time by BitZtream · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Not at a precise moment in time.

    before the decay, the decay must have occurred near 3:32 UTC on February 19."

    Probably occurred near 3:25, and 3:45 too, and probably yesterday, and the day before and the day before and pretty much the entire time between when the fuel stopped producing thrust and the time it hit the ground.

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  3. Not crushed - terminal velocity? by Animats · · Score: 3, Informative

    It seems surprising that the tank isn't crushed, but other tanks have come down from space without being crushed flat.

  4. Sketchy evidence? by 1+a+bee · · Score: 2, Funny
    I'm no expert in spaceships and such, so all I can go on are the linked articles. This passage from the Mongol News, however (the only article I could find that mentions anything about a Delta rocket) is not terribly trust inspiring:

    According to a team comprising specialists from defense, emergency and astrology, who inspected the object, the two objects described by local people as meteoroids, were parts of U.S delivery rocket Delta-2.

    I for one would take this with a pinch of salt. Especially if it comes from an astrologer, or from one who can't tell one from an astronomer.

  5. Re:space debris by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

    You will be modded "interesting" or "insightful" simply because you are bandying around wild technical terms that make it sound like you know what you're talking about (to people who know nothing about rockets). Yet the truth is nothing you say is grounded in any kind of relationship to the real world. Except maybe blowing the thing into smaller parts. But tethers? What are you smoking?

  6. Could not connect to the database server by MichaelSmith · · Score: 2, Interesting

    It seems the UB post has been slashdotted.

    The squashed thing hasn't disturbed the ground at all. I wouldn't expect a crater but a few displaced rocks would be expected. Thats what happened on Mars when the rover backshells impacted anyway. So maybe somebody dragged it to the site where the pictures were taken. It certainly looks like it came down with a hell of a thump.

    Also the sphere beside the squashed thing looks like it would have either been previously inside or attached to the larger object, or it would have rolled and bounced away. The picture looks somewhat staged for that reason.

    Definitely orbital or launcher debris though.

    1. Re:Could not connect to the database server by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

      I've been to Mongolia. In the steppes and desert areas the ground is sometimes a *very* hard surface. Also it is possible the objects bounced or rolled a few metres before coming to a stop. There's not quite enough resolution in the pictures to tell for certain, but the lower left corner of the upper photo (below where the guy is bending over to look at the debris) looks a bit like there is a shallow pit and some whitish, crushed rock. It's also February -- the ground is probably frozen. In this picture you can see patches of snow.

  7. Re:space debris by wizardforce · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Here ya go. Basic EM physics. Drag a conductive wire through a magnetic field and the field induces a voltage potential in the conductor. Applying the right hand rule to the system results in the induced potential forming a magnetic field to oppose the one that created it and thus results in a drag force which acts on the conductor and ultimately causes the orbit to decay.

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  8. I wonder how soon before the technology by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    from that rocket makes its way into Chinese appliances that we buy at Wal-mart.

  9. Next US war by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    On February 19th Mongolia declared war on the US after a missile attack that left one yak dead and several others startled. On February 20th Mongolia surrendered to the US and demanded war reparations totaling 20 billion dollars as well as one yak and roughly 10 gallons of milk lost from the startled yaks.

    1. Re:Next US war by JustOK · · Score: 3, Funny

      Not money. For yaks offed, Smirnoff!

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  10. Rocket Crashes? by Woek · · Score: 2, Informative

    That title is just a tiny bit sensationalist... I had images failed launch flashing through my mind. A final stage dropping to earth was a bit of a disappointment :-/

    1. Re:Rocket Crashes? by wizardforce · · Score: 2

      Heck what worried me was whether or not people were killed by the crash. Fortunately no one was hurt but it could have been tragic news. Most of the planet is reasonably uninhabited (ocean, desert, sparsely populated areas like siberia etc.) and so most of the time these objects won't fall into anywhere that you'd consider important like a city. Although wit hthe sheer quantity of garbage up there, I'm sure it is bound to happen at some point.

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    2. Re:Rocket Crashes? by bill_mcgonigle · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Fortunately no one was hurt but it could have been tragic news. Most of the planet is reasonably uninhabited

      I don't know about this Delta, but some of the rockets we send up are hydrazine powered. It can take a year for somebody to die from casual hydrazine hydrate contact.

      I wonder if these rocket sections are appropriately marked with skulls and crossbones, or such markings could even be seen upon landing. Or even if any of the toxins we employ can survive re-entry.

      If something fell out of space near me I'd be sorely tempted to check it out - we can't expect most of the world's population to understand that's not always a good idea.

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