Reentry watch · satellite

Sdx02: came down

Came down Oct 12, 2026, 11:05 PM UTC

Sdx02 came back into the atmosphere on October 12, 2026 at 11:05 PM UTC, over the Pacific Ocean. Most of it burned up high in the atmosphere.

What
Satellite (SDX02)
Catalog number
62460
Launched
Dec 30, 2024 (2024-253B)
Size on radar
large
Came down
October 12, 2026 at 11:05 PM UTC
Where it came down
42.7° N, 172.1° E, over the Pacific Ocean, heading northeast
Updates
8 from Space-Track, the last on Oct 13, 2026, 1:40 AM UTC

See it on the Sky Globe

Its last path

The map needs JavaScript. The list below names the cities near the path.

The line is where it would be at each moment of the window; the dot is where Space-Track expects it at the predicted time. Within the shaded band it could be seen, low in the sky, if it came down at that point.

How the prediction changed

IssuedTimeGive or take
Oct 13, 2026, 1:40 AM UTCOct 12, 2026, 11:05 PM UTC (down)1 minute
Oct 12, 2026, 10:10 PM UTCOct 12, 2026, 11:42 PM UTC40 minutes
Oct 12, 2026, 6:06 PM UTCOct 13, 2026, 12:26 AM UTC60 minutes
Oct 12, 2026, 1:31 PM UTCOct 13, 2026, 1:35 AM UTC2 hours
Oct 12, 2026, 1:33 AM UTCOct 13, 2026, 1:35 AM UTC4 hours
Oct 11, 2026, 1:54 AM UTCOct 12, 2026, 3:37 PM UTC7 hours
Oct 10, 2026, 12:14 PM UTCOct 13, 2026, 12:38 PM UTC15 hours
Oct 9, 2026, 4:30 PM UTCOct 13, 2026, 12:10 PM UTC18 hours

What a reentry looks like

Satellites and rocket stages hit the air at about 28,000 km/h (17,000 mph). About 70 to 100 km up they start to glow and break apart, so from the ground it looks like a slow line of orange and white fireballs, often with glowing trails, moving across the sky together in a straight line. It can last from 30 seconds to a few minutes, and it can be seen from up to about 1,000 km away, low on the horizon.

Not a meteor: a meteor is over in a second or two. A reentry is slower, lasts longer, and usually breaks into a cluster of pieces. Not a plane: no blinking lights, and it doesn't turn.

Is it dangerous?

Almost never. Starlink satellites are built to burn up completely. Big rocket stages can drop a few tough parts, like fuel tanks, which nearly always land in the ocean. If you find something you think fell from space, don't touch it: take photos and call the local police.

Saw it? Report it Everything coming down

Predictions from Space-Track.org (USSPACECOM's reentry messages). They narrow as the day comes: a few days out the time is only known to within hours, in the last hours to within minutes. Tumbling objects can still come down outside the window. Paths are worked out from the newest orbit data.