1,300-Pound NASA Satellite To Crash Down To Earth After 14 Years In Orbit

Last Updated:March 11, 2026, 09:31 IST

A decommissioned NASA spacecraft weighing 1,323 pounds will re-enter Earth's atmosphere on March 10, 2023. Most of it is expected to burn up.

A decommissioned NASA spacecraft weighing about 1,323 pounds is expected to re-enter Earth’s atmosphere on March 10 (US time), nearly 14 years after it was launched into space. According to predictions by the US Space Force, the probe is expected to re-enter the atmosphere at around 7:45 pm EDT on March 10, with an uncertainty of plus or minus 24 hours.

NASA said the spacecraft’s return will be uncontrolled, meaning engineers cannot steer where it will fall. However, the space agency expects most of the satellite to burn up as it passes through the atmosphere.

“Some components are expected to survive re-entry," NASA said, but added that the risk of harm to people on Earth is very low—about 1 in 4,200.

Experts say such events are not unusual, as defunct satellites and rocket debris regularly fall back to Earth. Retired astrophysicist Jonathan McDowell told The New York Times that the re-entry may appear as a bright streak of light in the sky for those who happen to see it.

“For the average person, it will be a nice light in the sky if you get lucky and, otherwise, don’t worry about it," he said.

According to NASA’s news release, both Van Allen Probe A and Van Allen Probe B “flew through the Van Allen belts, rings of charged particles trapped by Earth’s magnetic field, to understand how particles were gained and lost," from 2012 to 2019.

The Van Allen Probes mission helped scientists better understand how radiation belts around Earth behave and how solar activity affects satellites, astronauts and communication systems.

Originally designed for a two-year mission, the probes continued collecting data for nearly seven years before NASA ended the mission after the spacecraft ran out of fuel.

“The belts shield Earth from cosmic radiation, solar storms, and the constantly streaming solar wind that are harmful to humans and can damage technology, so understanding them is important," it said.

NASA had initially predicted that the probe would re-enter Earth’s atmosphere around 2034, but stronger solar activity in recent years increased atmospheric drag, causing the spacecraft’s orbit to decay faster than expected.

The twin spacecraft, Van Allen Probe B, is currently expected to remain in orbit until at least 2030.

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