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An old Soviet probe built to explore Venus is about to crash to Earth after 53 years, conducted in low Earth orbit.
The spacecraft is expected to re-enter the Earth’s atmosphere within the next few weeks. The probe «Cosmos 482» was launched on March 31, 1972, and failed to go beyond low Earth orbit due to an engine failure that prevented the spacecraft from reaching the required speed. Over the next 53 years, the spacecraft was in Earth orbit.
«Since this lander was designed to survive passage through the atmosphere of Venus, it is possible that it will survive reentry into the Earth’s atmosphere intact on impact. The risks associated with this are not too high, but they are not zero either,» said satellite monitoring expert Marco Langbrook.
While in orbit, the Soviet probe broke into four pieces. Two pieces of debris left orbit 2 days after launch and reentered the atmosphere over New Zealand. The rest, including the lander and upper stage, entered a stable orbit at an altitude of approximately 210 to 9,800 km, where they have remained to this day.
As noted by According to Marco Langbrook, the re-entry of the Soviet probe is expected around May 10. It is considered unlikely that the object will fall on a populated area – most likely, the debris will fall into a remote part of the ocean.The exact date is difficult to name, as the Sun, which is now in its active phase, heats and expands the Earth’s atmosphere, creating greater atmospheric resistance for orbital objects.
The mass of the spacecraft is 495 kg. It consists of a carrier body and a spherical lander. Its size and mass make the fall of «Cosmos 482» equivalent to a meteorite fall. The exact location of the impact will remain unknown until reentry, as it depends on when the vehicle begins to burn and disintegrate Nevertheless, uncontrolled returns are still a risk, albeit a small one, that should not be forgotten or ignored.
Source: Gizmodo