Winston
Lorenzo von Matterhorn
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Failed 1970s Venus Probe Could Crash to Earth This Year
25 Feb 2019
https://www.space.com/failed-soviet-venus-spacecraft-falls-to-earth-soon.html
Excerpts:
Still adrift around Earth, making one lap every 112 minutes, is the wayward Cosmos 482 Venus entry capsule, a contraption built to withstand the heat of diving into that cloud-veiled planet's thick atmosphere. The errant Venus lander mass is 1,091 lbs. (495 kilograms) and carries significant thermal protection.
And this piece of space junk will likely survive its inevitable descent back to its home planet, experts said.
"Yes, the descent craft will survive a re-entry with no problems," said satellite watcher Thomas Dorman of the northeastern Oklahoma community of Zeb. "It would be funny if it was spotted coming down and the parachute has deployed … but I am sure the batteries to fire the pyrotechnics to release the parachute have died long ago!"
"It is interesting to note the apogee of the orbit is slowly starting to decay. My guess right now is that re-entry is late this year to mid next year. But predicting its decay is as much of an art [as] it is science. The other issue is, nobody can forecast solar activity for the next year, which could affect the decay time," he said.
Dorman said Cosmos 482 is in an orbit that swings it out from Earth over 1,700 miles (2,735 km) away, but the low point, the perigee of the orbit, is just 125 miles (200 km) above our planet.
Another rough estimate suggests that what's left of the failed Venus probe might stay up for another 2.5 years, even with such a low perigee.
A collection of Spacecraft Astrophotography
https://www.ralfvandebergh-astrophotography.simpsite.nl/home
25 Feb 2019
https://www.space.com/failed-soviet-venus-spacecraft-falls-to-earth-soon.html
Excerpts:
Still adrift around Earth, making one lap every 112 minutes, is the wayward Cosmos 482 Venus entry capsule, a contraption built to withstand the heat of diving into that cloud-veiled planet's thick atmosphere. The errant Venus lander mass is 1,091 lbs. (495 kilograms) and carries significant thermal protection.
And this piece of space junk will likely survive its inevitable descent back to its home planet, experts said.
"Yes, the descent craft will survive a re-entry with no problems," said satellite watcher Thomas Dorman of the northeastern Oklahoma community of Zeb. "It would be funny if it was spotted coming down and the parachute has deployed … but I am sure the batteries to fire the pyrotechnics to release the parachute have died long ago!"
"It is interesting to note the apogee of the orbit is slowly starting to decay. My guess right now is that re-entry is late this year to mid next year. But predicting its decay is as much of an art [as] it is science. The other issue is, nobody can forecast solar activity for the next year, which could affect the decay time," he said.
Dorman said Cosmos 482 is in an orbit that swings it out from Earth over 1,700 miles (2,735 km) away, but the low point, the perigee of the orbit, is just 125 miles (200 km) above our planet.
Another rough estimate suggests that what's left of the failed Venus probe might stay up for another 2.5 years, even with such a low perigee.
A collection of Spacecraft Astrophotography
https://www.ralfvandebergh-astrophotography.simpsite.nl/home
