The 8.5-ton Tiangong-1, or “Heavenly Palace”, satellite is now out of control and is doomed to plunge into the atmosphere, a top academic has warned.

“I expect it will come down a few months from now – late 2017 or early 2018,” Jonathan McDowell, a Harvard University astrophysicist, told The Guardian.

He previously warned that there was no way of telling exactly where the space station was going to plunge to Earth.

“You really can’t steer these things,” he said last year.

“Even a couple of days before it re-enters we probably won’t know better than six or seven hours, plus or minus, when it’s going to come down."

The station will reduce significantly in size as the Earth's atmosphere burns it up.

However, large chunks of metal could still fall to Earth and injure or kill anyone standing the impact site.

A spokesperson for China's space agency said: "Based on our calculation and analysis, most parts of the space lab will burn up during falling."

But a huge clump of metal could still rain down on unwitting victims.

He added: "There will be lumps of about 100 [kilograms] or so, still enough to give you a nasty wallop if it hit you.

As well as building a space station, it intends to eventually put one of its citizens on the surface of the moon.

In April, China vowed to send a craft to orbit Mars, land and deploy a rover to explore the surface by 2020.

Film at 11... 😟

A 220+lb block of steel, falling from space, is going to do a bit more than give you a nasty wallop.

Good chance it would kill anyone in a 30-50ft diameter, if it hit, say, in a Walmart parking lot at lunch time....

#-o

I believe the correct term is chop suey the Chinese8-[

Blow it up? You don't seem to understand the amount of debris and crap we already have to track since the last time someone blew up a satellite!

#-o

I think I read that here......

i think it was more like all assault rifles can penetrate 10" of steel... distance doesn't matter... 😟

BECAUSE ??

75% OF THE CHIREE SPACE STATION PARTS WERE MADE BY

"HARBOR FREIGHT"

YES!

Maybe better yet, the house of one of the American-Nazi leaders....

I will head you all off and say that you hope it hits me. Thanks!

The Tiangong-1 stopped responding to China’s commands 2016, according to Space.com. Scientists have since anticipated the space station returning to Earth as a manmade meteorite, but are unsure where it will land.

In recent months, scientists have had a better approximation of where the station may land. According to the Washington Post, they’ve warned that Spain, Portugal, France and Greece may see the 19,000-pound meteorite plummet within their borders.

Scientists say the Tiangong-1 is currently spinning around Earth at 17,500 mph, which amounts to a trip around the planet every 90 minutes. As the station descends closer to Earth and gains momentum, the thicker air will cause friction to surround the craft in superheated plasma, the Post reported.

Depending on the time of day and location, the nonprofit research firm Aerospace says, the returning station may be visible for “up to a minute or more.”

There is reportedly a slight chance the falling debris will hit somebody.

Film at 11... 😟

David (dpnewell)