BrizM upper stage from Arabsat 4A launch explodes in orbit

[Analoguesat]

The Briz-M upper stage that was left over from the botched Arabsat 4A launch of February 28th 2006 has exploded in orbit leaving over 1000 fragments littering space.

Major Breakup Event Over Australia

On February 19th, late-night sky watchers across Australia witnessed a bright explosion followed by a debris cloud that hung in the sky for nearly an hour. At first a mystery, the source of the blast is now understood. It was a Russian Briz-M rocket booster misplaced in orbit last year by the failed launch of an Arabsat communications satellite. The fuel tanks of the Briz-M ruptured on Feb. 19th, producing a vivid naked-eye display and more than 1000 pieces of debris. Experts are calling this a "major breakup event," comparable to or even worse than last month's Chinese anti-sat test.

Theres an amazing series of photos showing the event here:

http://spaceweather.com/swpod2007/23...arradd_500.gif
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[BGonaSTICK]

That's pretty amazing