(MENAFN- Saudi Press Agency) A U.S. military weather satellite apparently exploded while in orbit last month after a sudden temperature spike in its power system, the U.S. Air Force said Tuesday.
The explosion, first reported by Space News magazine, was the second Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) spacecraft to experience a catastrophic breakup in 11 years. The latest failure produced 43 pieces of new space debris, the Air Force said.
On February 3, flight controllers observed a rapid temperature spike in the DMSP-F13 satellite's power system and quickly shut down its non-essential systems, but the satellite lost the ability to position itself, the Air Force said.
At the same time, the U.S. Joint Space Operations Center in California began tracking a field of debris near the satellite, the Air Force said, adding an investigation is underway.
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.