"NASA's Controlled Demolition: The Science Behind Ending a Spacecraft's Mission"

NASA's NEOWISE spacecraft, which has been searching for near-Earth objects for over a decade, is nearing its end as it will drop into Earth's atmosphere and burn up due to increased solar activity affecting its low-Earth orbit. The spacecraft, originally the WISE mission, was repurposed in 2013 to search for near-Earth objects and has exceeded expectations. As NEOWISE prepares to go offline, the team is celebrating its accomplishments while also preparing for the launch of its successor, the NEO Surveyor mission.