Utah People's Post

The Latest News from the Beehive State

Monday, March 1, 2021
Log in
  • National News
    • Female Caseworker Killed & Doctor Shot in Philadelphia
  • State News
    • Car Chase Leads to Drug Arrest
  • Tech & Science
  • Health
    • How to Prepare For Ticks Season
    • Magical Weight Loss Bean Scam
  • Sports
  • Business
You are here: Home / Tech & Science / ISSE-3: Famous Zombie Aircraft, May Return Home

ISSE-3: Famous Zombie Aircraft, May Return Home

June 16, 2014 Posted by Editor

A long-lost spacecraft is coming home for the first time in three decades. Launched 36 years ago, the zombie spaceship is apparently coming home after nearly 20 years of drifting out in space with no contact on a lonely course through space. Launched during the disco era and shuttered by NASA in 1997, the spacecraft is now returning to the civilization that abandoned it.

ISEE-3, short for International Sun-Earth Explorer—was launched in 1978, executing a pair of scientific missions and a groundbreaking in-space maneuver. It was believed that the spaceship, the International Sun-Earth Explorer-3, was destined to pass by Earth without any sort of fanfare, , except for a slim chance of crashing into the Moon, or possibly starting to loop purposelessly through the inner solar system over and over.

The Planetary Society’s Emily Lakdawalla said, “Ordinarily when NASA is done with a mission, they send a command to turn off the transmitter. This was kind of a mistake, the fact that this transmitter is still operating. More impressive is the fact that  more than 30 years old instruments of the spacecraft still seem to be in working order. It’s definitely a special spacecraft in the history of planetary exploration. The satellite weighs over 850 pounds, but its contributions to science have been very significant”.

After spending 36 years in space, the craft, International Sun-Earth Explorer-3 appears to be in a decent working condition. As it nears Earth, it is expected to arrive in August and we’ll have our best opportunity in about 36 years to redirect it on another mission. The foremost challenge, the engineers say now will be in figuring out how to command it. The spacecraft was long ago given up as dead and as a result the ’70s-era technology that was used to communicate with it was scrapped. The Deep Space Network lost the proper transmitters in 1999. Currently, no one has the operational manual and the zombie spaceship can be inconsistent at times.

In 2008, the Deep Space Network received the carrier frequency of the spacecraft’s radio, essentially a dial tone from the faraway spot where ISEE-3 was spotted.

Two years later, NASA considered reviving contact to the 2014 flyby, but concluded that the scientific payoff would not be worth the effort and money. Fans of the old spacecraft persisted, arguing that it could be used to train future scientists and engineers.

The efforts to recover the zombie craft started in April of this year using a telescope in Puerto Rico. The group was able to contact the spaceship. This officially made Skycorp the first private organization to actually command a spacecraft located outside the orbit of Earth. Mr. Wingo and 20 other individuals who came from around the United States, including numerous members of the original ISEE-3 group started to raise $125,000 to help pay costs to do with the flyby and they ended up collecting almost $160,000, from just under 2,240 donors. They were then able to sign an agreement with NASA to be able to take over.

Mr. Wingo has now persuaded NASA to use the Deep Space Network to identify ISEE-3’s trajectory, to calculate the rocket burn required to put it on a path to Earth orbit.

If everything goes as planned, the zombie spaceship may return home after nearly 20 years of drifting out in space and will hopefully return to its original location.

Share this:

  • Tweet
  • Share on Tumblr
  • Email

Filed Under: Tech & Science Tagged With: ISSE-3, long-lost spacecraft, NASA, The Deep Space Network, Zombie spacecraft returns

Woman working out at the gym

Just 23% of Americans Are Working Out Enough in Their Spare Time

June 29, 2018 By Amelia Donovan

Poliovirus Therapy Gives Brain Cancer Patients New Hope (Study)

June 29, 2018 By Amelia Donovan

United Airlines airplane

Passenger Mysteriously Dies on United Airlines flight Bound for Boston

June 28, 2018 By Amelia Donovan

Breakfast sandwich

Here Are Some Foods No Nutritionist Would Ever Eat

June 27, 2018 By Amelia Donovan

Poppy flower

UN Warns of Surge in Opium-based Drugs and Cocaine Supply

June 27, 2018 By Amelia Donovan

U.S.-Canada border

French Jogger Detained 2 Weeks for Accidentally Crossing Border

June 26, 2018 By Amelia Donovan

Plus size model

Normalizing Plus Size Could Fuel Obesity Crisis (Study)

June 25, 2018 By Amelia Donovan

Giant manta ray

Unique Manta Ray Nursery Spotted off Texas Coast

June 23, 2018 By Amelia Donovan

The rainbow flag

WHO Scraps Transgenderism from List of Mental Illnesses

June 22, 2018 By Amelia Donovan

456 People Dead at U.K. Hospital after Taking too Many Painkillers

June 21, 2018 By Amelia Donovan

Kenyan girls dancing

Kenyans Facing Poor Nutrition as Supermarket Shopping Is on the Rise

June 20, 2018 By Amelia Donovan

Pages

  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy GDPR
  • Staff
  • Terms and Conditions

Recent Posts

  • Just 23% of Americans Are Working Out Enough in Their Spare Time
  • Poliovirus Therapy Gives Brain Cancer Patients New Hope (Study)
  • Passenger Mysteriously Dies on United Airlines flight Bound for Boston
  • Here Are Some Foods No Nutritionist Would Ever Eat
  • UN Warns of Surge in Opium-based Drugs and Cocaine Supply
  • French Jogger Detained 2 Weeks for Accidentally Crossing Border
  • Normalizing Plus Size Could Fuel Obesity Crisis (Study)

Related Articles

  • Crosses on a wall

    Religious People Live Longer, Are Less Stressed than Atheists, Study

    Jun 15, 2018
  • Antineutrino Detector

    Scientists Discover an Even More Elusive Particle than Neutrinos

    Jun 5, 2018
  • Funny Albert Einstein

    Time Travel Is Already Here

    May 30, 2018
  • Planet 2003UB313

    Scientists Found Evidence that Elusive Planet 9 May Be Real

    May 18, 2018
  • Kuiper Belt Object

    This Asteroid in Kuiper Belt Is Nothing Scientists Have Seen Before

    May 11, 2018
  • Elephant raising its trunk

    Elephants Communicate with Their Feet, Scientists Confirm

    May 9, 2018
  • Starbucks store

    Black Men Settle for $1 Each after Racist Arrest at Starbucks

    May 3, 2018
  • Tech addiction

    Facebook Pioneers Forming Coalition to Lobby Against Tech Addiction

    Feb 5, 2018
  • Kaspersky Co-founder Natalia Kasperskaya

    Kaspersky Boss: Bitcoin Was Created by U.S. Govt to Fund CIA’s Black Ops

    Feb 1, 2018
  • Amazon Go shopper

    Amazon Gets Rid of Cashiers at Its Check-Out Free Store

    Jan 30, 2018

Categories

  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Health
  • National News
  • Nature
  • Provo
  • Salt Lake News
  • Science
  • Sports
  • State News
  • Tech & Science
  • Technology
  • Uncategorized
  • West Jordan
  • West Valley City
  • World

Copyright © 2021 utahpeoplespost.com

About · Privacy Policy · Terms of Use · Site Map · Contact

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.
This website uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. Learn more.