A Soviet spacecraft weighing about half a ton that failed to reach Venus 53 years ago is predicted to fall to Earth this weekend.
A titanium-coated spacecraft designed to land on the solar system's hottest planet could survive a fiery, uncontrolled plunge into Earth's atmosphere expected to happen on Saturday.
However, experts believe it will most likely fall on a water surface, covering most of the planet or an uninhabited area.
The likelihood of it landing in a populated area is “extremely low,” said Marcin Pilinski, a scientist at the University of Colorado at Boulder.
“While we can assume that a significant portion of this object will not burn up in the atmosphere upon entry, it could be seriously damaged on impact,” Mr. Pilinski said.
By Friday, all signs pointed to a re-entry into the atmosphere early Saturday morning ET, within hours of each other.
Although space debris trackers around the world agreed on their predictions, it was too early to say exactly when and where the spacecraft known as Cosmos 482 would land.
This uncertainty was caused by possible solar activity and the state of the spacecraft.
It was expected that by this time his parachutes would have lost their functionality and his batteries would have long since run out of power.
Dutch scientist Marco Langbroek estimated the impact speed at 150 miles per hour if the spacecraft remained intact.
In 1972, the Soviets launched Cosmos 482, planning to send it to Venus to join other spacecraft in the Venera program.
However, due to a rocket malfunction, the device became stuck in orbit around the Earth.
Gravity continued to act on him and was expected to eventually cause him to fall.
The spherical spacecraft, 3 feet (one meter) in diameter and weighing more than 1,000 pounds (495 kg), will be the last piece of Cosmos 482 to fall from the sky.
All other parts fell sharply over the course of the decade.
All surviving fragments will belong to Russia in accordance with the United Nations agreement.
Sourse: breakingnews.ie
