NASA's Swift Space Telescope to Reenter Earth Tonight... No Impact on Korean Peninsula

Expected within two hours of around 8:46 p.m.... Domestic and international agencies report similar estimates
1.5-Metric-Ton Satellite Ends 22-Year Mission... KASA to Monitor Until Reentry Is Complete

NASA's Swift space telescope is expected to re-enter Earth's atmosphere on the night of November 4. The roughly 1.5-metric-ton satellite will fall to Earth uncontrolled, but an analysis found that its orbital characteristics make a crash on the Korean Peninsula impossible.

The Korea Aerospace Administration (KASA) said on November 4 that an analysis by the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute, based on the telescope's orbit as of 8 a.m. that day, projected that it would re-enter the atmosphere within two hours of around 8:46 p.m.

The projected path of NASA's Swift space telescope, which is expected to re-enter Earth's atmosphere within two hours of around 8:45 p.m. on the 4th (Korea time). The yellow line indicates its projected path during the two hours before the forecast time, and the red line shows its projected path during the two hours after. Swift's orbital inclination is 20.5 degrees, so the Korean Peninsula is not within the possible impact zone. Provided by the Korea Aerospace Administration (KASA).

The U.S. Combined Space Operations Center (CSpOC) gave a reentry window of five hours before and after 7:47 p.m., while the European Space Agency (ESA) gave a window of approximately four hours and 48 minutes before and after 9 p.m. Both domestic and international agencies expect the reentry to take place on the evening of November 4, but their estimates of the exact time differ.

The Swift space telescope was launched in November 2004 to observe powerful gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) from space. Gamma-ray bursts are high-energy phenomena that occur when massive stars collapse or neutron stars collide. Swift completed its mission after about 22 years of operation, which ended on October 20, and has since gradually lost altitude. It is now orbiting approximately 199-205 km above Earth's surface.

Orbit Rules Out a Crash on the Korean Peninsula... Monitoring Until Reentry

A crash on the Korean Peninsula is considered impossible because Swift's orbital inclination is 20.5 degrees. Orbital inclination is the angle between a satellite's orbit and the equator, and determines the range of latitudes over which it can travel north and south across Earth's surface.

Swift passes only over areas between 20.5 degrees south and 20.5 degrees north latitude. The Korean Peninsula, by contrast, lies north of 33 degrees north latitude and is outside the satellite's predicted reentry range.

KASA said there was no need to issue the "Attention" stage of its space hazard alert, as the Korean Peninsula is outside the potential impact zone. However, given that this is the uncontrolled reentry of a large satellite, KASA plans to monitor its orbit and potential impact until reentry is complete, together with the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute.

Tae seog Oh, head of KASA, said, "There is no possibility that the Swift space telescope will crash on the Korean Peninsula, but we will closely monitor the situation with the relevant agencies until reentry is complete. We will continue to strengthen our monitoring and response capabilities to protect the public from space hazards, including the fall or collision of space objects."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.