Tiangong-1 Re-Entry Updates

Tiangong-1 – a ten-meter long, pressurized space station module from China – is approaching an uncontrolled re-entry into Earth’s atmosphere in March or April 2018 after suffering a fatal power failure in late 2015, marking the start of a slow descent toward its eventual demise. The re-entry of Tiangong-1 is considered a ‘high-risk event’ by those tracking events such as this because fragments of the module will survive and impact the ground; however, the risk for any individual being hit is minuscule, well below the probability of getting hit by lightning – contrary what tabloid press will be writing in the lead up to the spacecraft’s fiery plunge.