A U.S. satellite has likely exploded while in orbit after the temperature within its power system suddenly spiked, blowing it into 43 pieces of space debris, the Air Force believes.

The 20-year-old military weather satellite called the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program is the first to have a catastrophic breakup in more than a decade, according to Space News and Reuters reports.

The Air Force satellite was launched back in 1995 and had been acting as an operational spare for a seven-satellite DMSP network. Flight controllers noticed a sudden temperature spike in satellite DMSP-F13 on Feb. 3, and they quickly shut down non-essential systems. However, the Air Force said in a statement that the spacecraft had lost its ability to position itself, according to the reports.

Immediately after, the U.S. Joint Space Operations Center at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California tracked a field of debris in about the position where the satellite was located, and authorities are investigating the incident.

The DMSP constellation is responsible for providing global visible and infrared cloud imagery and other data related to oceanography and meteorology. The satellite that exploded was the oldest operational satellite in the network, which was flying about 500 miles above the Earth in what is known as high polar orbit.

One of its sister satellites, DMSP-F11, exploded in 2004, creating a 56-piece debris field.

The loss of the satellite won’t have any real impact on the ability of the constellation to do its job, according to the Air Force. DMSP-F13 had provided thousands of hours of weather imagery to the military, but it was transitioned to a backup role in 2006. It was not being used by the National Weather Service or the Air Force Weather Agency at teh time.