Danger risk is low
There is always a risk when space objects shoot towards Earth.
However, even if the satellite doesn’t fully burn up in the planet’s atmosphere, it is unlikely to be a risk.
The chance of a person being hit by space debris is under one in 100 billion annually, according to the ESA.
Where the debris are expected to land
Any debris from the satellite are likely to land in the ocean as water covers about 70 percent of Earth.
“The vast majority of the satellite will burn up, and any pieces that survive will be spread out somewhat randomly over a ground track on average hundreds of kilometres long and a few tens of kilometers wide (which is why the associated risks are very, very low),” ESA said.
Current predictions suggest it could land somewhere in the North Pacific Ocean.
Satellite expected to crash to Earth this morning
The European Space Agency’s (ESA) latest prediction suggests the satellite will fall to Earth at around 15:49 GMT or 10:49 EST.
Experts predict the uncertainty of this estimate is now just +/- 1.76 hours.
