When it comes to using machines, glitches and malfunctions are certainly inevitable. Personal devices, professional equipment and high profile machinery tend to wear out over time from constant use or stop working properly after being damaged or inflicted by ailments like a computer virus. In these situations, finding a solution can be very difficult, especially when the source of the problem is unknown or hard to fully determine. For example, it was recently discovered that an active satellite in Earth’s orbit has gone rogue.
This communications satellite is called Galaxy 15, which lost contact with ground control after being affected by a solar flare. According to a report from The Christian Science Monitor, the encounter with a solar flare probably fried the satellite’s brain and attempts to communicate with it and regain control have failed. Furthermore, the communications unit is persistently orbiting Earth and defying the orders sent to it by its owner, Intelsat. This situation might have been resolved if the satellite’s systems had completely crashed and it simply drifted away from the planet’s orbit as space junk. However, Galaxy 15 is a defiant survivor, still active in Earth’s orbit and is now endangering other satellites by continuing to transmit its own signal. The rebellious satellite is currently on the loose with its C-band telecommunication systems still operational since it abandoned its designated location of 133 degrees west longitude 36,000 kilometers over the equator. If left unchecked, Galaxy 15 will interfere the signals of other satellites, resulting in interruption of their programs, which are used by their customers including television watchers. That’s right, dear readers. This problem could affect us in our homes.
Nonetheless, scientists are also troubled by the fact that the rogue satellite is still running on full power, making it a free agent in Earth’s orbit since it won’t obey instructions from ground control. It seems that the experts don’t have an answer for this problem yet and that doesn’t bode well for the Syfy channel. As it turns out, Galaxy 15 is one of the satellites that provide the signal for the science fiction television network. Currently, Galaxy 15 is right on track to threaten a SES satellite, which serves the people of Luxembourg. Meanwhile, this situation has led to online searches for “galaxy 15 satellite”, which hit a grand total of 10,300 percent. Other searches including “nasa satellite imagery”, “satellite photo” and “nasa satellites” are also getting high numbers as well. Hopefully, the experts will figure out how to stop the rogue satellite before it can cause any real trouble.
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