CASSINI PROBE UPDATE: EXPERTS STILL FEAR NUCLEAR FOUL UP

CASSINI PROBE UPDATE: EXPERTS STILL FEAR NUCLEAR FOUL UP

SAG HARBOR, N.Y. (Wireless Flash) -- Doomsday just might fall on August 17th -- if an investigative journalist in New York is right. Karl Grossman, author of the book "The Wrong Stuff: The Space Program's Nuclear Threat to Our Planet" (Common Courage), claims fears are mounting that NASA's Cassini probe to Saturn may cause a nuclear disaster when it flies over the earth in two weeks. The probe is carrying 72 pounds of plutonium in its payload, which Grossman claims could cause a major nuclear nightmare when it passes over Earth at 11:28 p.m. Eastern time on August 17th. NASA's own research reveals that if the probe is accidentally sucked into the Earth's atmosphere, more than 5 billion people would be exposed to high amounts of radiation and tens of thousands could die. Although NASA claims the chances of a Cassini glitch are "one in a million," Grossman says he's skeptical since the space program has had a 12 percent accident rate in the past. NASA has 8 more nuclear cargo flights planned for the future.