Residents across parts of Louisiana, Mississippi, Arkansas, and Alabama were treated to a spectacular celestial display late Saturday night. Bright, slow-moving objects streaked across the sky, a sight caused by the reentry of a Chinese satellite.
At approximately 10:08 PM CST, the commercial imaging satellite GaoJing 1-02 (SuperView-1), operated by Beijing-based SpaceView, broke apart as it reentered Earth’s atmosphere above New Orleans. The satellite, originally launched on December 28, 2016, was widely observed as it traveled northbound toward Mississippi, Arkansas, and Missouri.
Astronomer Jonathan McDowell identified the space debris as GaoJing 1-02, confirming it had been inactive since January 2023 and its reentry was uncontrolled. He explained, “We knew it was coming down today but only with ±2 hour accuracy estimate, so we didn’t know where.” The slow pace and vivid brightness of the debris led many observers to initially mistake it for a meteor.
Social media platforms quickly filled with videos and photos of the event, with users sharing their awe and curiosity. The sighting captivated many who happened to look skyward at the right moment.
This event adds to the growing list of re-entry events witnessed globally as humanity’s activity in space continues to increase. Just last month, a fireball lit up the sky over North Texas, identified as a SpaceX Starlink satellite launched in 2022…