Progress Spacecraft Will Sink In Pacific

The Progress M-61 cargo spacecraft, which undocked from the International Space Station last year, will crash into the Pacific on Tuesday evening, a Mission Control center spokesman said on Monday.

By Nuclear Power Daily Editorial Team · Editorial process

Published January 21, 2008

The Progress M-61 cargo spacecraft, which undocked from the International Space Station last year, will crash into the Pacific on Tuesday evening, a Mission Control center spokesman said on Monday. The spokesman told RIA Novosti that the parts of the craft that do not burn up in the atmosphere will sink in a "spacecraft cemetery" at 40 longitude in the Pacific.

The so called spaceship cemetery is located not far from Christmas Island and is a designated area where many spacecraft, including the defunct Mir station, have ended up.

The Progress M-61 cargo spacecraft, which was detached from the ISS on December 22, 2007, was used as a platform for technical experiments, mission control said.

Source: RIA Novosti

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Nuclear Power Daily Editorial Team

The Nuclear Power Daily Editorial Team produces content across our two editorial pillars: space industry news and Mind & Meaning. We cover launches, missions, satellites, defense, and the technology of getting humans to space, alongside the psychology of ambition, isolation, and meaning under extremes. Articles reflect our team's collective editorial process, source verification, drafting, technical review, and editing, rather than a single writer's work. Nuclear Power Daily takes editorial responsibility for content under this byline. For more on how we work, see our editorial policy.