Pentagon to Shuttle: Gangway!

The Pentagon is scheduled to shoot down a wayward spy satellite (bad 
satellite, bad satellite!) after the space shuttle gets out of the way.

http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSN1560620220080216?virtualBrandChannel=10005

You can't make that up--or can you? There's beautiful basis for an sf
story 
or movie or tv episode:
--A failing falling satellite, filled with dangerous chemicals threatens
to 
fall on some hapless innocent city (or potential grim reapers).
--There's limited time to shoot it down before it crashes.
--Caught in the crossfire are Our Heroes, brave astronauts in the space 
shuttle, low on fuel, low on oxygen and out of time. They have to come 
home--now. There best chance, their only for a safe landing puts them in
the 
bullseye of the missile and the satellite.

This is one cold equation that's heating up!

-- Ken from Chicago (no relation to Don LaFontaine)