[pplante]

I was surprised to read they don't expect atmospheric burnup and are targeting a splash down in the Indian Ocean. I really hope someone didn't mess up some mundane detail in their calculations.

[ricardobeat]

That may be an oversight in the release, how would the mock satellites survive re-entry without heat shields?

[skissane]

I suspect they actually do expect them to burn-up on re-entry... but by telling the FAA they may splashdown, it absolves them of any problems if for whatever reason they fail to fully do so. And then the public communication has to match what they told the FAA.

[jjk166]

Survive as in "remain undamaged and functional"? Impossible. Survive as in "something solid makes it to the surface" is quite easy. Most satellites have debris land on Earth upon de-orbiting.