TWO SATELLITES COLLIDE IN ORBIT

Chris L Peterson wrote:
On Thu, 12 Feb 2009 19:03:36 -0500, "Greg Neill"
wrote:

The Iridiums are commercial satellites. I wonder if NASA sells
tracking/warning as a product to commercial users? I would think
so.

I don't think they do this. But at least one private company, AGI, sells
software and consulting services to the operators of space-based
equipment specifically to predict collisions. T.S. Kelso, who operates
the CelesTrak website, works for them, and I've been in the room with
him when his Blackberry fired off an alert of some kind. I know those
guys are monitoring pretty much everything on behalf of operators and
insurance companies, and I'm surprised they (apparently) missed this
one.

You have to pay the bill. Obviously the Ruskie's weren't on a dead bird. If
Iridium wasn't then even if the radar and computer saw it coming, no alert.

As the operators seemed stunned in their wording of their press release it is
obvious they had no clue. I'm sure if they did they would have nudged it a bit.

As for continuing insurance now, I suspect no one would write it. I'd expect
whatever they have just got canceled due to increased risk. As their birds are
all in the same orbit, just how much junk is there now to hit the rest of them?