The big reflective orb, called “The Humanity Star,” was supposed to float around our night skies for most of the year, but apparently the odd piece of space art is making an early exit. Peter Beck, the aforementioned CEO of Rocket Lab, announced that the useless ball is poised to reenter Earth’s atmosphere within days. When it does, it’ll be met with intense friction that will incinerate it.
“Visible from earth with the naked eye, the Humanity Star is a highly reflective satellite that blinks brightly across the night sky to create a shared experience for everyone on the planet,” Rocket Lab said of the project prior to launch in January. “Created by Rocket Lab founder and CEO Peter Beck, the Humanity Star is a geodesic sphere made from carbon fibre with 65 highly reflective panels. It spins rapidly, reflecting the sun’s rays back to Earth, creating a flashing light that can be seen against a backdrop of stars.”
Unfortunately for Beck, the object’s path was poorly planned and now the “star” will make its not-so-grand exit much sooner than was initially thought. The good news is that, because the object is little more than a hollow husk, it should be completely destroyed upon reentry, leaving no debris to fall back down to Earth. This comes as good news for researchers and astronomers who were concerned that a “space art” trend could further contribute to the incredibly dire space junk problem that already exists. – READ MORE
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