UA Researchers Track Chinese Space Station as It Falls
As Chinese space station Tiangong-1 falls to Earth, UA astronomer Vishnu Reddy and aerospace engineering graduate student Tanner Campbell are following its path using technology they developed in four months -- and with less than $2,000.
A defunct Chinese space station, Tiangong-1, is expected to fall to Earth any day now — on March 31, give or take a few days. When it does, it will be the largest manmade object to re-enter Earth's atmosphere in a decade.
As the day draws near, Vishnu Reddy, University of Arizona assistant professor of planetary sciences, and Tanner Campbell, an aerospace and mechanical engineering graduate student, are tracking its re-entry using a $1,500 optical sensor they built in four months.
It's giving an opportunity for our students to play a role in space situational awareness."
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