A satellite developed by Estonian students, ESTCube-2, was launched aboard Arianespace’s Vega rocket on 9 October; however, current suspicions suggest the satellite did not detach from the launch capsule in the rocket’s nose cone, failing to reach its orbit and was instead destroyed aboard the carrier rocket upon re-entry into Earth’s atmosphere.
In the initial hours after the launch, radio amateurs around the world attempted to capture packets resembling the ESTCube-2 beacon, the Tartu Observatory reported on Tuesday. Since many cube satellites use radio amateur frequencies for communication, it is possible that instead of ESTCube-2, another satellite was mistakenly identified.
Continue reading Estonia’s ESTCube-2 satellite likely destroyed at Estonian World.
