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Credit & Copyright: AMOS, AEOS;
Courtesy Compton GRO
Science Support Center
Explanation:
On 2000 June 4, the 17-ton Compton Gamma-Ray Observatory
returned to Earth
after 9 years in orbit -- ending its remarkable
voyage of discovery.
The massive, bus-sized spacecraft carried an
unprecedented array
of gamma-ray detectors which explored the bizarre,
high-energy universe of solar flares,
black holes, pulsars,
supernovae, active galaxies, and gamma-ray bursts.
Sequenced above from upper left to lower right,
video
frames recorded by the
Air
Force Maui Optical Station's
Advanced Electro-Optical System 3.7 meter telescope show Compton in its
nearly final orbit over
Hawaiian skies.
A controlled deorbit brought surviving pieces of the satellite
to a safe splashdown in the Pacific Ocean about 2,400 miles
southeast of Hawaii.
Russia plans to deorbit
the now uninhabited Mir
space station
later this month, also bringing it safely to rest in the Pacific.
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: orbit - satellite - compton - gro
Publications with words: orbit - satellite - compton - gro
See also: