After 14 Years, NASA says a 600 kg satellite will crash back into Earth

The low risk of injury takes into consideration the fact that the majority of Earth’s surface – about 70 per cent is covered by water, meaning any parts that will make it past the planet’s atmosphere will most likely crash into the ocean.

Van Allen Probe A and Van Allen Probe B, originally launched for a two-year mission, ended up collecting extensive data on Earth’s two permanent radiation belts for nearly seven years. The mission eventually concluded after both spacecraft ran out of fuel and could no longer orient themselves toward the Sun.

Named after scientist James Van Allen, the spacecraft were designed to fly through and study rings of high-energy radiation particles trapped by Earth’s magnetic field.

These doughnut-shaped regions, known as the Van Allen belts, help shield our planet from solar storms, cosmic radiation and streams of charged particles from the Sun, commonly referred to as the solar wind.

After the mission ended in 2019, NASA analysts predicted that it would re-enter Earth sometime in 2034, but those calculations changed after the current solar cycle started. In 2024, after the Sun reached its solar maximum, it triggered several space weather events, resulting the Van Allen Probe A’s earlier than expected re-entry.

As for Van Allen Probe B, NASA says the satellite is expected to re-enter Earth sometime before 2030.