Fragment of the Soviet satellite "Cosmos-482" will fall to Earth next week: what is known
Kyiv • UNN
A fragment of the "Cosmos-482" satellite, launched by the USSR in 1972 and stuck in orbit, is predicted to fall to Earth on May 10. The risks are similar to the risks of a meteorite strike
A fragment of the Soviet satellite "Cosmos-482" will soon fall to Earth. This was written by The Sun, reports UNN.
Details
It is noted that the USSR launched "Cosmos-482" back in 1972, but it got stuck in orbit due to a breakdown.
According to forecasts by Marco Langbroek, a lecturer in space situational awareness at the Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands, a fragment of the satellite will fall to Earth on May 10. It will move at a speed of approximately 242 km/h.
With a mass of just under 500 kg and a size of 1 meter, the risks are similar to the risks of a meteorite impact
He also noted that with an orbital inclination of 52 degrees, the fragment could land anywhere between 52 degrees north and 52 degrees south latitude.
This includes most of southern and central Europe and Asia, as well as America, Africa and Australia. Of course, the greatest chance is that it will land in one of the oceans, as happened with the failed Phobos-Grunt mission on January 15, 2011
The publication adds that "Cosmos-482" was launched by the Soviet Molniya rocket on March 31, 1972 as part of a mission to Venus.
Recall
In April, the European Space Agency (ESA) launched into orbit the Biomass satellite. Its main task is to monitor the state of forest cover on Earth and assess its ability to absorb carbon dioxide.