The reconnaissance satellite Kosmos-2551 burned up while re-entering the atmosphere on October 20, creating a large fireball that was visible in many areas across the Midwest of the United States.
The Russian satellite streaking across the U.S. sky. (Video: AMS)
The American Meteor Society (AMS) recently received over 80 reports from residents in areas ranging from Tennessee to Michigan regarding the object. AMS shared images of the fireball provided by several witnesses, including a 27-second video from Chris Johnson capturing the moment the fireball created a long tail in the sky over Fort Gratiot, Michigan. The fireball illuminated the sky at approximately 12:43 PM local time on October 20 (11:43 PM on October 20 in Hanoi).
“12:43 PM is the predicted time when the Kosmos-2551 satellite passed through the area. Therefore, I can confidently conclude that the fireball was caused by the Kosmos-2551 satellite,” said astronomer and satellite tracking expert Jonathan McDowell from the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics.
The burning process of Kosmos-2551 posed no threat to people on the ground.
Kosmos-2551 was a reconnaissance satellite launched by Russia on September 9 but fell shortly thereafter. The spacecraft had not adjusted its orbit at any point after launch. Experts had predicted that Kosmos-2551 would re-enter the atmosphere on October 19. The burning of Kosmos-2551 did not pose a threat to people on the ground. The satellite weighed approximately 500 kg, and no debris fell to Earth, according to McDowell.
Fireballs created by space debris are not uncommon. For example, last year, the third stage of a Soyuz rocket re-entered the atmosphere, lighting up the sky in Australia. Such events are becoming increasingly common due to the growing number of satellites being launched into orbit. The surge in satellites is raising concerns among experts. They believe that governments need to take action to ensure that the issue of space debris does not spiral out of control.
