Iridium 33
communications satellite
Quick Summary
Iridium 33 was a communications satellite owned by Motorola. On February 10, 2009, it collided with Kosmos 2251, an inactive Russian military communications satellite, approximately 760 km (470 miles) above northern Siberia. This collision destroyed both satellites and created a significant amount of space debris. This event was the first instance of an operational satellite being destroyed by a collision with another satellite.12
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