Operation Burnt Frost
Operation Burnt Frost was a military operation to intercept and destroy non-functioning U.S. National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) satellite USA-193. The mission was described by the Missile Defense Agency as a "mission of safeguarding human life against the uncontrolled re-entry of a 5,000-pound satellite containing over 1,000 pounds of hazardous hydrazine propellant". The launch occurred on 21 February 2008 at approximately 10:26 p.m. EST from the USS Lake Erie, using a heavily modified Standard Missile-3 (SM-3) to shoot down the satellite. A few minutes after launch, the SM-3 intercepted its target and successfully completed its mission. The operation received scrutiny from other countries, mainly China and Russia.
Operation Burnt Frost | |
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Break up of USA-193 following interception | |
Objective | Destruction of non-functioning satellite USA-193 |
Date | 4 January – 21 February 2008 |
Executed by | USS Lake Erie |
Outcome | Satellite destroyed on 21 February 2008 |
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