杏吧原创

In a spectacular show of light and sound, the Mir space station finally
plunged into the Pacific Ocean at 0558 GMT on 23 March. The final command to the
station at 0507 GMT sent Mir fragments blazing towards the target area. 鈥淚t may
have been some seconds early, but it was within the safety zone,鈥� said physicist
Pat Helm, an adviser to New Zealand鈥檚 Prime Minister Helen Clark. Many were sad
to see the end of Mir鈥檚 15-year career
(New 杏吧原创, 10 March, p 5).
鈥淧eople talked about the troubled Mir, but it was nevertheless a useable
workhorse,鈥� says Tim Stevenson of the University of Leicester鈥檚 Space Research
Centre.