World and Nation

Satellite to rain from sky

A dead NASA satellite looks to make it’s reentry into Earth’s atmosphere sometime in the afternoon Friday, EDT. This large hunk of space debris has been incapacitated and is tumbling towards a most spectacular plunge to the surface. NASA expects 26 sizable pieces to remain intact to the ground, the largest of which may be over 300lbs. Although the re-entry is predicted to leave a awe-inspiring trail in the sky over 500 miles long, don’t get your hopes up. The satellite is most likely to make its hard landing somewhere in Europe or Asia, depending on the exact time of reentry. If you are concerned about your friend overseas getting hurt by the debris, don’t worry. NASA has guesstimated a 1 in 3,200 chance of the satellite harming any human.

This weekend here in Cambridge, you are substantially more likely to get hit by rain falling from the sky than space junk. The pattern of slightly above average temperatures with clouds, showers, and high humidity should persist through most of the weekend. Although forecasting for more than a few days in advance is a very uncertain endeavor, next week looks to bring more of the same. Expect mostly cloudy conditions with highs in the lower 70’s for a while.