These Students Purposely Crashed A NASA Satellite Into The Ocean

With NASA's blessing, a group of Colorado University students were able to participate in what sounds like the coolest university test ever: crashing a real NASA satellite into the ocean.

The satellite, known as the Ice, Cloud and Land Elevation Satellite (or ICESat), orbited the Earth for seven years gathering data on ice sheets and sea ice dynamics until its scientific payload inexplicably shut down.

Scientists couldn't restart it, so they tasked Colorado University students to help bring it down. Which really means help figure out how to use the ICESat's last bit of fuel to re-enter the Earth's atmosphere and burn up its 907kg body to 90kg as it crashes into the Arctic Ocean.




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