Friday night or Saturday morning, a 53-year-old Soviet spacecraft is due to re-enter Earth鈥檚 atmosphere.
As I explained in my May 鈥淲hat鈥檚 Up In The Sky鈥� feature, the heat-resistant Soviet spacecraft launched on March 31, 1972, bound for Venus. After a successful launch into a temporary orbit around Earth, a problem with a timer cut an engine burn prematurely. The spacecraft was unable to leave Earth’s orbit.
It鈥檚 been circling Earth for 53 years and will reenter the atmosphere around Friday or Saturday, according to satellite expert Marco Langbroek. 听
To get the latest information on how to see the doomed satellite, go to the website, enter your location, and click on the Kosmos 482 link in the left column. You will get visible pass information. I currently have two visible passes in the re-entry window, but that may change.
You’ll need binoculars to see the dim spacecraft if it passes over your location. If you are super lucky to see it re-entering the atmosphere, it will look like a fireball or a very bright meteor.
Because 70% of our planet is covered by water, it is most likely any remains of Kosmos 482 will get the “deep six.” I鈥檓 hoping someone, somewhere gets a pic and/or video for us to see and be amazed. 听听
While you’re at it, you should bookmark Heavens Above. It’s an invaluable resource for tracking objects in the sky, like the International Space Station and other satellites. You will need to check Heavens Above frequently for updates, as there will be refinements made to the time and location of re-entry.
Follow Greg Redfern on ,听听and his听 to keep up with the latest news in astronomy and space exploration.听
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