The Department of Defense has confirmed that NASA’s Thermosphere Ionosphere Mesosphere Energetics and Dynamics Mission (TIMED) spacecraft and the Russian Cosmos 2221 satellite passed each other safely in orbit at about 1:34 a.m. EST on Wednesday, Feb. 28. NASA has confirmed that TIMED is functioning. While the two non-maneuverable satellites will approach each other again, this was their closest pass in the current predicted orbit determinations, as they are gradually moving apart in altitude.
The TIMED mission studies the influence of the Sun and of human activity on Earth’s mesosphere and lower thermosphere/ionosphere. The region is a gateway between Earth and space, where the Sun’s energy is first deposited into Earth’s environment.