Jan 29, 2008 6:00 pm US/Eastern
Air Force General: Spy Satellite Could Hit U.S.
WASHINGTON (AP) ―
The U.S. military is developing contingency plans to deal with the
possibility that a large spy satellite expected to fall to Earth in
late February or early March could hit North America.
Air Force Gen. Gene Renuart, who heads of U.S. Northern Command,
told The Associated Press on Tuesday that the size of the satellite
suggests that some number of pieces will not burn up as it re-enters
the Earth's atmosphere and will hit the ground.
"We're aware that this satellite is out there," Renuart said. "We're
aware it is a fairly substantial size. And we know there is at least
some percentage that it could land on ground as opposed to in the
water."
He added, "As it looks like it might re-enter into the North
American area," then the U.S. military along with the Homeland Security
Department and the Federal Emergency Management Agency will either have
to deal with the impact or assist Canadian or Mexican authorities.
Military agencies, he said, are doing an analysis to determine which
pieces would most likely survive re-entry. But he cautioned that
officials won't have much detail on where or when it will crash until
it begins to move through the atmosphere and break up.
Renuart added that there does not as yet appear to be much concern
about sensitive technologies on the satellite falling into enemy hands.
"I'm not aware that we have a security issue," he said. "It's really
just a big thing falling on the ground that we want to make sure we're
prepared for."
The satellite includes some small engines that contain a toxic
chemical called hydrazine — which is rocket fuel. But Renuart said they
are not large booster engines with substantial amounts of fuel.
(© 2008 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
