Out-of-control Soviet spacecraft CRASHES into Earth after getting stuck in orbit for 50 years on doomed Venus mission
The spaceship never completed its mission to reach Venus
SPACE JUNK Out-of-control Soviet spacecraft CRASHES into Earth after getting stuck in orbit for 50 years on doomed Venus mission
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window)
Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
A SOVIET-era spacecraft has crashed down to Earth more than half a century after its failed launch to Venus.
The space vessel hurtled back down in an "uncontrolled reentry", the European Union Space Surveillance and Tracking confirmed.
Sign up for Scottish Sun
newsletter
Sign up
3
A failed Soviet spacecraft launched in 1972 has arrived back at Earth
Credit: Anatoly Zak/RussianSpaceWeb.com
3
The spacecraft hurtled 'uncontrolled' into Earth's atmosphere
Credit: SWNS
The European Space Agency debris office agreed that the spacecraft had reentered - after it failed to appear over a German radar station.
It's not yet clear where the speeding spaceship crash landed - or how much of it survived the fiery descent.
Experts said ahead of time that the wreckage could arrive whole, given it was built to withstand a landing on Venus - the solar system's hottest planet.
The hunk of space junk, called Kosmos 482 Descent Craft, was first launched in 1972 with the intention of it touching down on Earth's neighbouring planet.
But this mission failed - and the probe has been stuck in low Earth orbit ever since.
Marco Langbroek, a lecturer in space situational awareness at Delft Technical University in the Netherlands predicted the lander's return in a blog post.
Scientists said there was a very slim chance of the machine smashing into people or buildings.
Much of the spacecraft came tumbling back to Earth within a decade of the failed launch.
More to follow... For the latest news on this story keep checking back at The Sun Online
Thesun.co.uk is your go-to destination for the best celebrity news, real-life stories, jaw-dropping pictures and must-see video.
Like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/thesun and follow us from our main Twitter account at @TheSun.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Scottish Sun
12 hours ago
- Scottish Sun
Rancid-smelling super ants that form whopping colonies & even eat CABLES rampaging across Europe – & could infest the UK
One supercolony nest in Switzerland is the size of 35 football pitches BUG OFF Rancid-smelling super ants that form whopping colonies & even eat CABLES rampaging across Europe – & could infest the UK Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) A STINKING species of super-ant is storming through Europe on a path to the UK. The millions-strong mega-colonies have wiped out power supplies and even roads as they overwhelm the ground beneath entire towns. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 9 Tapinoma magnum ants have been moving north through Europe Credit: Getty 9 They can chomp through electric cables, cutting out power supplies Credit: TFI 9 The species, called Tapinoma magnum, hails from the Med and North Africa - but has been pushing up through the continent. They spread rapidly and establish supercolonies of up to 20million across 60 acres which are "virtually impossible" to eradicate. There were so many ants, you couldn't see the floor anymore Agnes Wirth And anyone who dares squash a T. magnum is greeted by the stench of rancid butter. The invaders hit headlines in Sweden this week as officials in regions around the capital Zurich attempt to oust the pests. read more in world news POOL POSITION Tourists wear sprint shoes & STRETCH before dawn dash for Magaluf pool spot The ants have also taken root in France - but Germany has suffered the most. In Germany, the sleepy south-western town of Kehl has been swamped. Locals reported watching the town's pavements and curbs sinking as the earth was carted away by the bugs, causing havoc with the roads. And a playground was forced to close after ants took over the entire area and turned it into a nest. City workers had to jet hot water into the labyrinth to wash them out. The wider state of Baden-Württemberg has suffered power cuts and internet outages after the insects chomped through electric cables. Watch incredible vid of ants OUTSMARTING humans to solve puzzle first T. magnum's destructive power comes from the sheer scale of their underground warrens and their tireless determination to expand. While most ant species organise a few thousand workers around a single queen, T. magum clans contain up to 20million and hundreds of queens. Instead of attacking one another, the smaller colonies merge together in alliance. The British Pest Control Association told The Sun that the UK is at risk from the advancing crusade. Individual efforts by homeowners and gardeners can't control an infestation Niall Gallagher They explained the ants "spread mainly through horticultural imports, especially potted plants and trees from the Mediterranean". They added: "If T. magnum were to establish here, it could become a nuisance. "They form vast supercolonies, displace native species and can even cause structural issues by excavating under paving." Although the species has not marched into the UK yet, a spokesperson for Defra said the agency "remains vigilant" to the threat. The countryside around Zurich has been tormented by the ants since 2018. 9 A city worker in Kehl, Germany, treats a playground overwhelmed by a T. magnum nest Credit: Alamy 9 Power outages in Germany have been blamed on the bugs Credit: Facebook / Lutte contre la Fourmi Tapinoma Magnum - Région Corse 9 The ants can form supercolonies with hundreds of queens and millions of workers Credit: Alamy Despite an almighty effort to clear them out, the ants remain "well established" in four areas. In Winterthur, they blocked a billion-pound construction project when they settled exactly where a multi-track railroad tunnel was planned. In the nearby Oetwil an der Limmat region, one supercolony infested an entire five-hectare potato field - about seven football pitches. A local, Agnes Wirth, told Swiss site SRF: "There were so many ants, you couldn't see the floor anymore." But that is dwarfed by the colony in Volketswil, on the other side of Zurich, where an area the size of 35 football pitches is teeming with the busy-body bugs. The infestation is so enormous that the local authority has been legally forced to act. Katharina Weber of the Zurich Department of Construction said: "In areas with large infestations, a coordinated approach by specialists is required. 9 They displace the earth beneath tarmac - causing roads and pavements to sink Credit: Alamy 9 A power box overwhelmed by the ants Credit: TFI 9 The ants are small and look similar to the black garden ant in the UK Credit: Alamy "This means a plan is needed, and special pest controllers must be deployed. These can target the insecticide at the nests." In the UK, DEFRA recommends that anyone who sees a non-native insect species takes a photo and reports it. Mike Fox, record manager for the Bees, Wasps and Ants Recording Society, said: "As far as I know, there are no records of Tapinoma magnum becoming established in the UK but of course it could possible in the future." Niall Gallagher, the Technical Manager at British Pest Control Association, said they closely monitor pest species - including Tapinoma magnum. He told The Sun: "Research on Tapinoma magnum supercolonies in Switzerland has found that these ants live outdoors and can continue to forage at temperatures as low as 6 degrees during the winter months. 'Individual efforts by homeowners and gardeners are not sufficient to effectively control an infestation, and specifically tailored pest control solutions are needed to eradicate a colony." He recommend that anyone concerned about an ant infestation contacts a professional pest controller for help.
Scottish Sun
3 days ago
- Scottish Sun
Super Earth in ‘Goldilocks zone' discovered with new alien-hunting tool – now it will search for more habitable planets
Located in the Lyra constellation, the Super Earth planet completes an orbit of its nearby star every 207.5 days ET PHONE HOME Super Earth in 'Goldilocks zone' discovered with new alien-hunting tool – now it will search for more habitable planets Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) SCIENTISTS have stumbled across a new Super-Earth that orbits inside its star's habitable zone with a new alien-hunting tool. Searching for Earth-like planets - and Earth-like life - is the ultimate goal for planetary science. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 3 Located in the Lyra constellation, the Super Earth planet completes an orbit of its nearby star every 207.5 days Credit: Alamy 3 An artist's impression of Kepler-725b, a gas giant planet in the same system And finding planets that lie in the Goldilocks zone of their sun-like stars – where the conditions are 'just right' to possibly host life – is key to that mission. An international team of scientists, led by the Yunnan Observatories of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), have used a new technique to find these potentially habitable worlds. It's called the Transit Timing Variation (TTV) technique - which looks for changes in the predicted transit times of an exoplanet. If the time changes, it could indicate the presence of other unseen planets in the system that are gravitationally influencing the transiting planet. The technique is a good way to detect smaller planets that would otherwise be difficult to find By analysing the TTV signals of Kepler-725b, a gas giant planet in the same system, the team were able to find its hidden sister planet Kepler-725c, according to a new study published in Nature Astronomy. Researchers said the technique offers a promising alternative in the hunt for "Earth 2.0." Kepler-725c has 10 times the mass of Earth and is located in the habitable zone of the sun-like star Kepler-725. It receives roughly 1.4 times the solar radiation than Earth does. Best-ever sign of ALIEN life found on distant planet as scientists '99.7% sure of astounding biological activity signal' Located in the Lyra constellation, the Super Earth planet completes an orbit of its nearby star every 207.5 days. During part of this orbit, the planet enters its star's habitable zone - meaning it could host alien life. Little else is known about the planet so far. It is the first time it has been used to discover a Super-Earth, a type of rocky exoplanet that is larger than Earth but too small to be considered a gas giant like Neptune. Astronomers have relied on alternative techniques to find exoplanets for decades. Like the transit method, where astronomers track how the light from a host star dims when a planet passes in front of it. Or through radial velocity (RV) observations, which is when scientists watch the slight wobble of a star as it interacts with the gravitational pull of an orbiting planet. However, both of these techniques have their flaws and make it difficult to detect planets with long orbital periods. The transit approach, for example, requires a planet's orbit to align exactly with our line of sight from Earth. Whereas the RV method requires extremely high-precision measurements, which makes it harder to find smaller planets. 3 An artist's impression of the Kepler-725 system - the small planet in the lower right is the newly discovered Super-Earth in the habitable zone Credit: Gu Shenghong All you need to know about planets in our solar system Our solar system is made up of nine planets with Earth the third closest to the Sun. But each planet has its own quirks, so find out more about them all... How old is Earth? Plus other facts on our planet How many moons does Mercury have? What colour is Venus? How far away is Mars to Earth? And other facts on the red planet How big is Jupiter? How many moons does Saturn have? Does Uranus have rings? How many moons does Neptune have? How big is Pluto? How hot is the Sun?
Daily Mail
4 days ago
- Daily Mail
Ultra rare 'Harbinger of Doom' fish seen as a sign of looming natural disaster washes up on Australian beach
A rare 'doomsday' nine-foot-long oarfish has washed up on a beach in Tasmania. The sea creature was discovered on Ocean Beach on the western coast of the Australian island on Monday by dogwalker Sybil Robertson. Robertson, who estimates the fish was about nine feet in length, said of the rare find: 'It was fantastic. I just knew it was something unusual and weird.' Oarfish are often interpreted as a bad omen when seen outside of their natural habitat in the depths of the ocean. Robertson said she did not know how rare the fish was until she shared images of the sea creature on a local Facebook group, which show the enormous silver fish washed up on the sand. The post was then re-shared on social platform Reddit and quickly went viral, with several Internet users commenting on the potential meaning of the fish, which has been linked to anticipating catastrophic events in Japanese mythology. 'The ocean is very unhappy with humanity's disdain for it', one user commented. Another said: 'We're seeing a lot of these rare "doomsday" fish washing up these days, aren't we?'. 'The world DOES seem to be ending more frequently lately', a third wrote. Oarfish can measure up to 36 feet in length and weigh over 441 pounds. Legend has it they are harbingers of earthquakes or other natural disasters. The rare sighting in Tasmania comes months after an oarfish washed up on a beach in the Canary Islands. The sea creature was discovered on February 10 on the coast of Playa Quemada in Lanzarote by bathers, and sparked fears online. A video of the sea creature went viral on Instagram, showing how a man goes up to the silver fish to rescue it. The sighting on the Spanish island came just weeks after a similar fish sparked fears on a beach in Mexico. Surfers spotted the creature on the southern tip of the Baja California Peninsula. The massive fish, about as long as a surfboard, featured a silvery-blue body with a stunning red fin trailing down its back but had an injured tail.
