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\t\t\t\t\t\t07\/03\/2024<\/span> The European Space Agency (ESA) Space Debris and Independent Safety Offices are closely monitoring the reentry of a pallet of used ISS batteries and calculating estimates for when and where the reentry will occur.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n The batteries, nine in total, were released on 11 January 2021 and will undergo a natural\u00a0 reentry, which is now predicted for 8 March +\/- 0.4 days.<\/p>\n The total mass of the batteries is estimated at 2.6 metric tonnes, most of which may burn up during the reentry. While some parts may reach the ground, the casualty risk \u2013 the likelihood of a person being hit \u2013 is very low.<\/p>\n The reentry will occur between -51.6 degrees South and 51.6 degrees North. Large uncertainties, primarily driven by fluctuating levels of atmospheric drag, prevent more precise predictions at this time. The closer we get to the expected reentry window, the better the concerned region can be geographically constrained.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n ESA is monitoring the object and, upon request, providing\u00a0ESA Member States\u00a0with the latest predictions on the time and location of the reentry, which they then combine with their own analyses.<\/p>\n A large space object reenters the atmosphere in a natural way approximately once per week, with the majority of the associated fragments burning up before reaching the ground. Most spacecraft, launch vehicles and operational hardware are designed to limit the risks associated with a reentry.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
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