(meteorobs) Come on Dirk...

[dfischer at astro.uni-bonn.de]

> I still find the vague statements from NASA odd.

They are indeed - as I pointed out in a rant in
http://skyweek.wordpress.com/2011/09/23/live-blog-zum-reentry-des-dicken-uars
some hours ago - and IHMO require some explaining by NASA and/or the
military 'assets' feeding them the information on the whereabouts of that
big satellite. *Either* the situational awareness itself is significantly
worse than we used to believe (which would be pretty bothersome) *or* the
military kept NASA in the dark (which would be pretty bothersome) *or*
NASA knows but is keeping the world in the dark (which would be extremely
unkind, to say the least). I hope that some space/military reporters with
the right 'contacts' will go after this (I'm noting growing unease about
the UARS way of things in many quarters already) so that things run more
smoothly when ROSAT comes down later this year. After all *that*
satellite, made in Germany, will drop some 1.6 metric tons on the ground,
including a huge X-ray telescope ...

Dan (not into conspiracy theories at all ... yet)