OMG! Satellite falling to Earth

- A European satellite that ran out of fuel
will start falling in the next few days, and
fragments of the disintegrating 2,000-pound
spacecraft are expected to strike the Earth's
surface.
Nobody knows where or when the fragments will
hit, but the European Space Agency has said the
parts are likely to fall into the ocean or
unpopulated areas. Potential spots will be
narrowed down closer to re-entry, ESA said on its
website.
Re-entry probably will occur Sunday or Monday,
Rune Floberghagen, mission manager for the
Gravity Field and Steady-State Ocean Explorer,
better known as GOCE, told the New York Times.
GOCE was launched in 2009 to map variations in
the Earth's gravity in 3D, provide ocean
circulation patterns and make other
measurements.
ESA's website said the satellite "became the first
seismometer in orbit" in March 2011 when it
detected sound waves from the earthquake that
struck Japan.
GOCE was expected to fall much earlier but fuel
consumption was less than expected. In August,
the satellite's altitude was lowered to about 139
miles, lowest of any research satellites, to improve
the accuracy of the information being gathered,
ESA's website said.
GOCE ran out of fuel October 21. On November 4,
ESA's website said the satellite was orbiting the
Earth at 119 miles and the rate of descent would
increase significantly in coming days.
Source: CNN