---
title: "Amazing Footage Shows Ancient NASA Satellite Burning Up During Reentry"
description: "A NASA satellite that launched in 1964 — over half a century ago — just burned up as it reentered the Earth's atmosphere."
date: "2020-09-01"
modified: "2020-09-01"
authors:
  - name: "Victor Tangermann"
    job_title: "Senior Editor"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor"
url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/footage-nasa-satellite-burning-up-reentry"
categories:
  - "NASA"
  - "Space"
tags:
  - "atmospheric research"
  - "NASA"
  - "satellite"
  - "the digest"
---

# Amazing Footage Shows Ancient NASA Satellite Burning Up During Reentry

![A NASA satellite that launched in 1964 — over half a century ago — just burned up as it reentered the Earth's atmosphere.](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/amazing-footage-shows-nasa-satellite-burning-up-during-reentry.jpg>)
*\<em\>Image: B. Levionnois/P. Jenniskens/NASA/SETI Institute\</em\>*

## Burning Up

A NASA satellite that [launched in 1964](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/nasa-satellite-1960s-die>) — over half a century ago — just burned up as it reentered the Earth's atmosphere.

The dramatic event over the skies of Tahiti and the Cook Islands was caught in a visually striking video by a member of a Facebook community of airplane spotters, as [reported by *CNET*](<https://www.cnet.com/news/watch-an-ancient-nasa-satellite-disintegrate-spectacularly-in-the-sky/>).

## OGO-1

The satellite, dubbed OGO-1, was part of NASA's Orbiting Geophysical Observatories project, a mission that ended in 1971. Since then, it's been circling the Earth as one of countless bits of space junk.

The ancient satellite was sent into orbit to study the Earth's magnetosphere, the region around our planet that's affected by Earth's magnetic field. It was operational until 1969, when it was put into standby mode.

## Five Spacecraft

A [NASA statement](<https://www.nasa.gov/feature/nasa-s-ogo-1-spacecraft-to-return-home-over-the-weekend>) last week noted that University of Arizona’s Catalina Sky Survey first spotted a tiny object on August 25, which appeared to be on an "impact trajectory" with Earth.

The University of Hawaii’s Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System (ATLAS) then had a closer look and confirmed it was in fact OGO-1.

OGO-1 was one of five spacecraft in its cohort, but the last to have its orbit decayed enough to be recaptured by the Earth's atmosphere.

**READ MORE:** [Watch an ancient NASA satellite disintegrate spectacularly in the sky](<https://www.cnet.com/news/watch-an-ancient-nasa-satellite-disintegrate-spectacularly-in-the-sky/>) \[*CNET*\]

**More on reentry:** *[A Massive Chinese Rocket Is Plummeting Out of the Sky](<https://futurism.com/chinese-rocket-plummeting-sky>)*

## Author
I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida.

### Author social links  
[Bluesky](<https://bsky.app/profile/vtanger.bsky.social>)