Soviet-Era Space Probe Crashes Back to Earth After 53 Years in Orbit

A Soviet-era space probe, which spent over five decades orbiting Earth, reentered the planet's atmosphere on Saturday, ending its 53-year journey in space. The spacecraft, known as Kosmos 482, was originally launched in 1972 as part of a series of Soviet missions to Venus, but it failed to reach its destination due to a rocket malfunction and remained in orbit around Earth.

The European Union Space Surveillance and Tracking confirmed the spacecraft's uncontrolled reentry, noting its disappearance from subsequent orbits. The European Space Agency's space debris office also reported the reentry after the probe failed to appear on radar over a station in Germany. At the time of writing, it was unclear exactly where the spacecraft fell or how much of it, if any, survived the fiery descent.

Experts had long warned that some of the spacecraft’s parts could crash down to Earth, given its design for a possible landing on Venus—the solar system's hottest planet. Despite this, scientists reassured the public that the chances of debris causing harm were extremely low.

Kosmos 482’s mission was marred by its failed launch to Venus, which left it trapped in Earth's orbit. Its spherical lander, encased in titanium and weighing nearly 500 kilograms, remained the last component of the spacecraft still in orbit. As time passed, gravity gradually pulled the probe back towards Earth, and experts were unable to predict the exact timing or location of its reentry. The unpredictable nature of solar activity and the spacecraft's deteriorating condition added to the uncertainty.

By Saturday morning, U.S. Space Command had not yet confirmed the spacecraft's crash but was actively monitoring and analyzing the data. Kosmos 482 attracted heightened attention from both government and private space agencies due to its size and the likelihood of surviving reentry. Unlike typical reentries, where space debris is deliberately targeted to land in vast oceans, the probe came down uncontrollably, leaving scientists and military experts on edge.

While it marked the end of a long journey for Kosmos 482, its reentry also underscores the growing challenge of managing space debris—a legacy of missions that once aimed to conquer the unknown, only to leave remnants circling the Earth for decades.