The Jules Verne fireball
Today (29th September 2008), after a successful first mission, the Jules Verne freighter (also known as the Automated Transfer Vehicle – ATV), will fire its engines on two separate occasions to decay its current orbit and plunge towards the Pacific Ocean. On board, months of trash from the International Space Station. 4 more missions are currently planned for the $1bn price tag freight container. No one is really sure how much of the spacecraft will reach the Pacific ocean. Most of it should burn up as it re-enters the atmosphere at a whopping 27,360 km/h. There is a small chance though that the craft will reach the ocean, although in pieces. For this reason, an exclusion zone for air and sea traffic has been put around the possible landing area. A model of the ATV is on show at the ISM and a copy of the model is available for purchase in the ISM gift shop.
[Here's one YouTube vid of the spectacular reentry firestreak
http://tw.youtube.com/watch?v=bvfANdWKJio&feature=PlayList&p=8330EFB431CFDF08&index=3 ]
-Paradox