19 Oct 2011

Car-sized satellite heading for Earth

9:27 pm on 19 October 2011

A satellite the size of a large car is hurtling towards Earth and is expected to crash down within days.

The 2.5-tonne German X-ray telescope is speeding towards Earth at about 23,000 km/h, but scientists are unsure where it will hit, the ABC reports.

Parts as large as a refrigerator door and weighing up to 400kg could hit the Earth, but scientists say most of the satellite named ROSAT will burn up as it re-enters the atmosphere.