The Humanity Star satellite is officially dead, months earlier than expected

Bye, bye, Humanity Star. We hardly knew you. 

On Thursday, Rocket Lab's Humanity Star satellite — effectively a disco ball flying through a low orbit around Earth — re-entered Earth's atmosphere, burning up in the process. 

According to U.S. Strategic Command, the satellite, which was designed to occasionally flash, becoming the brightest object in the night sky, de-orbited at about 9:30 a.m. ET.

The Humanity Star's life was short. 

The satellite was launched as a secret payload aboard one of Rocket Lab's Electron launchers in January. It was initially expected to orbit the planet for about 9 months, but it didn't quite pan out that way.  Read more...