A satellite "goes rogue" and inexplicably begins stealing other communications signals.
83 replies, posted
[URL]http://buzz.yahoo.com/buzzlog/93656?fp=1[/URL]
[quote=Yahoo! News #1]
Don't be alarmed. High above your heads, a [URL="http://search.yahoo.com/search;_ylt=ApWh5QZx7rSXatlMEO.OeE.bvZx4?p=zombie+satellite&toggle=1&cop=mss&ei=UTF-8&fr=buzz&cs=bz"]zombie satellite[/URL] is [URL="http://www.csmonitor.com/Science/2010/0509/Zombie-satellite-runs-amok-in-Earth-s-orbit"]on the loose[/URL]. OK, actually, it won't really be a bother to us earthlings. Or at least to most of us. (More on that later.) But the rogue communications satellite is wreaking havoc in Earth's orbit and does threaten to interfere with signals coming from other satellites. Here's the backstory...
The communications satellite named [URL="http://search.yahoo.com/search;_ylt=ApWh5QZx7rSXatlMEO.OeE.bvZx4?p=Galaxy+15&cs=bz&fr=buzz"]Galaxy 15[/URL] lost contact with ground control after a solar flare probably [URL="http://www.shortnews.com/start.cfm?id=84044"]fried its brain[/URL]. As a story from the [URL="http://search.yahoo.com/search;_ylt=ApWh5QZx7rSXatlMEO.OeE.bvZx4?p=Christian+Science+Monitor&cs=bz&fr=buzz"]Christian Science Monitor[/URL] reports, attempts from Earth to contact the satellite have been unsuccessful. But instead of just dying and drifting off, the satellite has continued to orbit the Earth, even though it refuses to receive instructions from its owner, Intelsat.
For the science nerds out there: The satellite is still on, with its "C-band telecommunications payload [URL="http://news.yahoo.com/s/space/20100503/sc_space/outofcontrolsatellitethreatensothernearbyspacecraft"]still functioning[/URL] even as it has left its assigned orbital slot of 133 degrees west longitude 36,000 kilometers over the equator." Translation: Not good.
What's [URL="http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/seealso/2010/05/tech_brief_3.html"]confounding scientists[/URL] is that even though the satellite is toast, it continues to operate at full power, but with nobody telling it what to do. Why on earth we should care: The "zombiesat" (as its known in space talk) could steal a working sat signal, and interrupt programming for its customers. Yes, that means our television programs. The horror. As the blog [URL="http://www.boingboing.net/2010/05/04/solar-storm-creates.html"]Boing Boing[/URL] points out, Galaxy 15 was one of the satellites that carried the [URL="http://search.yahoo.com/search;_ylt=ApWh5QZx7rSXatlMEO.OeE.bvZx4?p=Syfy&cs=bz&fr=buzz"]Syfy[/URL] channel's signal. And now it's met an end good enough to be its own Syfy show.
The Galaxy 15 is on course to mess with an SES satellite that transmits to Luxembourg. If it's any consolation to the good people of Luxembourg, officials are [URL="http://news.discovery.com/space/zombiesat-attack-solar-storm-fries-satellites-brain.html"]calling the situation[/URL] "unprecedented."
The undead satellite has caused searches for "[URL="http://search.yahoo.com/search;_ylt=ApWh5QZx7rSXatlMEO.OeE.bvZx4?p=galaxy+15+satellite&cs=bz&fr=buzz"]galaxy 15 satellite[/URL]" to rise an astronomical 10,300% in the last week. Searches were also out of this world for "[URL="http://search.yahoo.com/search;_ylt=A0oGkz87mehLuqwAijBXNyoA?p=nasa+satellite+imagery&cs=bz&fr=buzz"]nasa satellite imagery[/URL]," "[URL="http://search.yahoo.com/search;_ylt=ApWh5QZx7rSXatlMEO.OeE.bvZx4?p=satellite+photo&cs=bz&fr=buzz"]satellite photo[/URL]," and "[URL="http://search.yahoo.com/search;_ylt=ApWh5QZx7rSXatlMEO.OeE.bvZx4?p=nasa+satellites&cs=bz&fr=buzz"]nasa satellites[/URL]." It's also caused people to wonder "[URL="http://search.yahoo.com/search;_ylt=ApWh5QZx7rSXatlMEO.OeE.bvZx4?p=how+many+satellites+are+in+space&cs=bz&fr=buzz"]how many satellites are in space[/URL]." Not enough to bump into each other. Yet.[/quote]
[URL]http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100511/ap_on_re_us/out_of_control_satellite[/URL]
[URL="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/ap/brand/SIG=11f589428/**http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ap.org%2Ftermsandconditions"] [IMG]http://l.yimg.com/a/i/us/nws/p/ap_logo_106.png[/IMG][/URL]
[quote=Yahoo! News #2]
LONDON – A TV communications satellite is drifting out of control miles above the Earth, threatening to wander into another satellite's orbit and interfere with cable programming across the United States, the satellites' owners said Tuesday.
Communications company Intelsat said it lost control of the Galaxy 15 satellite on April 8, possibly because the satellite's systems were knocked out by a solar storm. Intelsat cannot remotely steer the satellite to remain in its orbit, so Galaxy 15 is creeping toward the adjacent path of another TV communications satellite that serves U.S. cable companies.
Galaxy 15 continues to receive and transmit satellite signals, and they will probably interfere with the second satellite, known as AMC 11, if Galaxy 15 drifts into its orbit as expected around May 23, according to AMC 11's owner, SES World Skies.
AMC 11 receives digital programming from cable television channels and transmits it to all U.S. cable networks from its orbit 22,000 miles (36,000 kilometers) above the equator, SES World Skies said. It operates on the same frequencies as Galaxy 15.
"That fact means that there is likely to be some kind of interference," SES World Skies spokesman Yves Feltes told The Associated Press. "Our aim is to bring any interference down to zero."
He would not name any of the cable television channels or providers that could be affected or say how long the interference could last.
Feltes said one option would using AMC 11's propulsion system to shift that satellite about 60 miles (100 kilometers) away to an orbit that's still within its carefully prescribed "orbital box" but as far away as possible from Galaxy 15.
He said SES had other strategies under consideration but declined to provide details.
"We have all of our technicians, all of our specialists on this case," he said.
Both companies said there was no risk of an actual collision between the two satellites in space.
Intelsat said it was analyzing signals from Galaxy 15 daily in order to predict its trajectory and was trying to figure out if it can shut down the satellite's transmission so it would not interfere with AMC 11.
The company declined to comment on the value of Galaxy 15 but such spacecraft can be worth about $400 million (?315 million) and cost about the same to launch.
Feltes said the two companies, both based in Luxembourg, were cooperating closely.
"They have tried numerous things to regain control of the satellite or to have it finally shut down," he said. "It needs some collaboration to bring the impact of this failure to an absolute minimum."[/quote]lol
No way.
Fuckin' Skynet.
Holy shit.
Galaxy-15: "ASSUMING CONTROL"
Not the cable tv. ANYTHING BUT THAT!
Creepy, but at the same time awesome.
blow it up with missiles pls.
Troll satellite.
It's those pesky moon-men and their techno jargon hacker magic.
Oh dear, no!
I for one welcome our new Satellite over lords.
If Galaxy-15 takes out some TV satellites: "I KNOW YOU FEEL THIS."
Swamp gas
Dead space?
Zombie! D:
The Palin satellite.
First Voyager 2 and now this?
Oh god they're becoming sentient!
It's Skynet.
Go ahead China, you know what to do.
Christian Science Monitor.
That was no Solar Flare, it was an alien transmitting it's rogue AI into one of our satellites! :tinfoil:
I'd laugh if it did actually somehow become sentient.
Time to modify some cruise missiles and shoot down another satellite.
It's either sentient or some pretty sweet hacker has taken over. (I'm looking at you, Ed!)
[quote=orionchronicles;21880444]galaxy-15: "assuming control"[/quote]
"I know you see this"
Oh shit.
Better lock yourselves up in the basement while you can.
[QUOTE=scout1;21883303]Time to modify some cruise missiles and shoot down another satellite.[/QUOTE]
Or you know one of them new fangled anti satellite missiles we've got sitting around going to waste.
[quote=canuhearme?;21880687]if galaxy-15 takes out some tv satellites: "i know you feel this."[/quote]
PRESERVE FoX SATELLITES IF POSSIBLE.
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