Cold War era Soviet spaceship destined for Venus to FINALLY crash back to Earth at 17,000mph… and could hit UK
A COLD War era Soviet spaceship destined for Venus is set to crash back to Earth, and it could hit the UK.
Kosmos 482 took off in 1972, but a failed launch left the spaceship circling lifelessly above us – until now.
Advertisement
6
A Cold War Soviet spaceship is set to crash back into Earth on May 10
Credit: ESA/David Ducross
6
Soviet spaceship Venera 4 being prepared for it's flight to Venus in 1967
Credit: Getty
6
Kosmos 482 - the craft set to hit Earth - was launched five years after the Venera 4
Credit: Getty
6
The red-zone shows where the spaceship could hit
Marco Langbroek, a satellite tracker based in the Netherlands, has predicted that the spacecraft will strike the Earth on May 10.
And according to the satellite watcher it's set to hit hard and fast, at a staggering speed of 17,000mph.
The Venus probe was originally built with a parachute but Langbroek warned that it would be unlikely to still work.
He added: "With a mass of just under 500 kg and 1-meter size, risks are similar to that of a meteorite impact."
Advertisement
read more on spaceships
Kosmos 482 is expected to fall a
nywhere between latitude
52 degrees north
and
52 degrees south - putting London in immediate danger
.
Also in the red-zone are Australia, South America, and Africa, as well as parts of Europe, North America and Asia.
But while the UK is at risk, experts have said the spacecraft is most likely that the spaceship will land in the ocean.
The Kosmos 482 was previously feared to hit the Earth back in 2019.
Advertisement
Most read in Tech
Exclusive
Exclusive
Exclusive
Video footage from October 2020 shows the failed spaceship plummeting out of orbit.
The startling footage shows the out-of-control craft hurtling through the sky - headed for Earth.
Watch moment crashing Chinese spaceship streaks through skies over US & breaks apart in storm of falling fireballs
We've known that Kosmos 482 would fall to Earth for years – after a disastrous launch during the Cold War space
race
left the space junk floating.
Soviet space missions typically involved putting spacecraft into an Earth "parking orbit".
Advertisement
The craft acted as a launch platform in space - complete with a rocket engine and probe.
The probe would be launched towards its
target
– but if unsuccessful, it would be left in orbit and re-branded as a "Kosmos" craft.
Kosmos 482 was launched by a Soviet Molniya booster on March 31, 1972, as part of a mission to Venus.
The craft successfully made it into an Earth parking orbit, but Soviet scientists failed to launch the probe into its Venus trajectory causing it to break into four pieces.
Advertisement
Two of these chunks remained in a low-Earth orbit and fell onto New Zealand within two days.
A NASA report at the time said: "The Blok L escape stage's main engine prematurely cut off after only 125 seconds of firing due to a failure in the onboard timer.
"As a result, the spacecraft entered an elliptical orbit around Earth.
"Officially, the Soviets named the probe Kosmos 482 to disguise its true mission."
Advertisement
What was Kosmos 482?
By Lydia Doye
KOSMOS 482 launched by a Soviet Molniya booster on March 31, 1972, as part of a mission to Venus.
The craft successfully made it into an Earth parking orbit, but Soviet scientists failed to launch the probe into its Venus trajectory causing it to break into four pieces.
Two of these chunks remained in a low-Earth orbit and fell onto New Zealand within two days.
The remainder of the craft is now expected to hurtle into the Earth in May at a staggering speed of 17,000mph.
On the morning of April 3, 1972, four titanium alloy balls that weighed around 30lbs fell within a 10 mile area outside of Ashburton, New Zealand.
The balls – which measured around 15 inches across – scorched holes in crops and left deep indentations, though no one was hurt.
According to international space law, the junk was supposed to be returned to its home nation.
But Soviet top brass denied all knowledge of the origins of the junk, so the farmer who owned the land where the balls fell kept them instead.
Advertisement
Two other pieces from Kosmos 482 went into a higher orbit - and are now expected to fall.
6
This diagram of a Soviet Venera spacecraft reveals what the probe may have looked like
Credit: Getty
6
The Venera preparing for launch
Credit: Getty
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Examiner
2 days ago
- Irish Examiner
Universe was not formed in big bang but ‘bounced' out of black hole
The Universe may not have started with the Big Bang, but instead 'bounced' out of a massive black hole formed within a larger 'parent' universe, according to a new scientific paper. Professor Enrique Gaztanaga, from the University of Portsmouth's Institute of Cosmology and Gravitation, said that the current Big Bang theory was problematic as the laws of physics 'broke down' when used to explain it. His new explanation, published in the journal Physical Review D, suggests that the Universe was formed as a result of a gravitational collapse in a larger universe which generated a massive black hole leading to a rebound or 'bounce' causing our universe to emerge. One of the strengths of this model is that it makes predictions that can be thoroughly tested Professor Gaztanaga said: 'The Big Bang model begins with a point of infinite density where the laws of physics break down. 'This is a deep theoretical problem that suggests the beginning of the Universe is not fully understood. 'We've questioned that model and tackled questions from a different angle – by looking inward instead of outward. 'Instead of starting with an expanding universe and asking how it began, we considered what happens when an over-density of matter collapses under gravity.' Prof Gaztanaga explained that the theory developed by his team of researchers worked within the principles of quantum mechanics and the model could be tested scientifically. He said: 'We've shown that gravitational collapse does not have to end in a singularity and found that a collapsing cloud of matter can reach a high-density state and then bounce, rebounding outward into a new expanding phase. 'Crucially, this bounce occurs entirely within the framework of general relativity, combined with the basic principles of quantum mechanics. What emerges on the other side of the bounce is a universe remarkably like our own. 'Even more surprisingly, the rebound naturally produces a phase of accelerated expansion driven not by a hypothetical field but by the physics of the bounce itself. 'We now have a fully worked-out solution that shows the bounce is not only possible – it's inevitable under the right conditions. 'One of the strengths of this model is that it makes predictions that can be thoroughly tested. And what's more this new model has also revealed that the Universe is slightly curved, like the surface of the Earth.' He added: 'Furthermore, it could also shed new light on other deep mysteries in our understanding of the early universe such as the origin of supermassive black holes, the nature of dark matter, or the formation and evolution of galaxies.' Prof Gaztanaga, who is the science co-ordinator for the ARRAKIHS ESA space mission, said that the four wide-angle telescopes on the satellite could help confirm the theory through its ability to detect ultra-low surface brightness structures in the outskirts of galaxies which he explained were essential for studying how galaxies grow and evolve. Read More ISS welcomes its first astronauts from India, Poland and Hungary
Irish Examiner
3 days ago
- Irish Examiner
ISS welcomes its first astronauts from India, Poland and Hungary
The first astronauts in more than 40 years from India, Poland and Hungary arrived at the International Space Station on Thursday, ferried there by SpaceX on a private flight. The crew of four will spend two weeks at the orbiting lab, performing dozens of experiments. They launched Wednesday from Nasa's Kennedy Space Centre. The new arrivals shared hugs and handshakes with the space station's seven full-time residents, celebrating with drink pouches sipped through straws. Six nations were represented: four from the US, three from Russia and one each from Japan, India, P America's most experienced astronaut, Peggy Whitson, is the commander of the visiting crew. She works for Axiom Space, the Houston company that arranged the chartered flight. Besides Whitson, the crew includes India's Shubhanshu Shukla, a pilot in the Indian Air Force; Hungary's Tibor Kapu, a mechanical engineer; and Poland's Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski, a radiation expert and one of the European Space Agency's project astronauts on temporary flight duty. No one has ever visited the International Space Station from those countries before. In fact, the last time anyone rocketed into orbit from those countries was in the late 1970s and 1980s, travelling with the Soviets. Welcome aboard the International Space Station. It's an honour to have you join our outpost of international co-operation and exploration.' 'Welcome aboard the International Space Station,' Nasa's Mission Control radioed from Houston minutes after the linkup high above the North Atlantic. 'It's an honour to have you join our outpost of international co-operation and exploration.' Shubhanshu Shukla of the Indian Space Research Organisation, Tibor Kapu of Hungary, Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski of Poland, and Commander Peggy Whitson before departing for a mission to the International Space Station (AP Photo/Terry Renna) It's the fourth Axiom-sponsored flight to the space station since 2022. The company is one of several that are developing their own space stations due to launch in the coming years. Nasa plans to abandon the International Space Station in 2030 after more than three decades of operation, and is encouraging private ventures to replace it. Read More Katy Perry will write a song about her experience in space
Irish Independent
3 days ago
- Irish Independent
Nasa's James Webb Space telescope captures first image of exoplanet
©UK Independent Today at 00:30 Nasa's James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has captured an image of an exoplanet for the first time since it began science operations in July of 2022. The previously unknown celestial body has been named 'TWA 7 b.' It is about 110 light-years away from Earth around the constellation Antlia and orbits the young nearby star TWA 7.
