By Dean Murray via SWNS
Space scientists are paying nearly $19 million to destroy a satellite.
The European Space Agency (ESA) has awarded a private company a contract to bring the spacecraft to a fiery end as it re-enters Earth’s atmosphere.
The Destructive Reentry Assessment Container Object (Draco) mission will collect unique measurements during the reentry and breakup of a satellite from the inside.
A 40cm capsule specially designed to survive the destruction will descend on a parachute and transmit the valuable telemetry shortly after.
Spanish company Deimos has signed a first contract worth £2.5m for the start of the development of the satellite.
ESA said: “Over the nearly 70 years of spaceflight, about 10,000 intact satellites and rocket bodies have reentered the atmosphere with many more to follow. Yet for such a ubiquitous event, we still lack a clear view on what actually happens to a satellite during its fiery last moments.”
The Draco mission is described by ESA as a …