Latest news with #OrionSpacecraft
Forbes
01-05-2025
- Science
- Forbes
Soviet Probe Will Strike Earth Next Week — What To Know
The remains of a spacecraft launched by the U.S.S.R. in 1972 on a doomed mission to land on Venus could strike Earth between May 7 and 13 in a rare uncontrolled re-entry. Marooned in Earth orbit for 53 years, Kosmos 482 was built to withstand extreme temperatures on Venus, so it will survive re-entry if its heat shield is intact, but exactly where and when it will strike Earth is unknown. A space probe called Kosmos 482 sent to explore Venus by the U.S.S.R. in 1972 but marooned in Earth ... More orbit ever since is about to renter and crash-land. (Image shown is an artist's impression of NASA's Orion Spacecraft re-entering). Kosmos 482, or Cosmos 482, was launched on March 31, 1972, on a Soyuz rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, which was then part of the Soviet Union. It was designed to parachute into and land on Venus. Shortly after its launch, a malfunction put it into an elliptical Earth orbit that caused it to get as close as 200 miles (320 kilometers) but as far as almost 10,000 miles (16,000 kilometers). Since then its orbit has decayed considerably. Instead of landing on Venus in 1972, this descent craft looks set to land on Earth in 2025, with Marco Langbroek, a satellite analyst tracking Kosmos 482, predicting it to reenter at 06:01 UTC on Saturday, May 10, plus or minus 2.8 days. That makes the window for re-entry Wednesday, May 7 through Tuesday, May 13, though exactly when it lands will likely remain unknown until hours before it strikes. has data on how and when to see Kosmos 482 in the night sky, though it refers to it as the Venera 8 landing module. The spacecraft weighs about 1,091 lbs (495 kilograms), and when it strikes Earth, it will be traveling at around 150 mph (242 km/h). It could land anywhere between 52 degrees north and south of the equator. According to the United States Geological Survey, Earth's surface is 71% water, so statistically it's likely to land on the ocean. However, that region includes large swathes of Europe, Asia, Africa, the Americas and Australia. While most spacecraft don't survive re-entry or/and a crash landing, Kosmos 482 was built to withstand extremely high pressure and temperatures on Venus. 'The Kosmos 482 Descent Craft was designed to survive the dense atmosphere of Venus,' Langbroek told 'It will therefore likely survive re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere intact and make a crash landing. This will therefore be a high-interest re-entry.' According to NASA, Kosmos 482 was part of the U.S.S.R.'s Venera 8 mission to send two near-identical spacecraft to land on Venus and send back data on the planet's surface temperature and pressure. The first spacecraft launched successfully on March 27, 1972, and landed on Venus on April 6, 1972. The second launched four days later but failed to leave Earth's orbit after an upper-stage booster failure in the Soyuz rocket. All U.S.S.R. missions that remained in Earth orbit were renamed Kosmos/Cosmos. Between 1961 and 1984, the U.S.S.R.'s Venera program sent thirteen probes to Venus.
Yahoo
26-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
GMFS EaglePitcher Remarkable Women!
This is our last Remarkable Women segments for the year, so meet Heather Mauk who works at EaglePicher Technologies as a Sr. Quality Engineer! She has been working there for 28 years and loves it! She is really excited that more women have starting working on bigger projects and receiving higher roles in the company. She was going to school for something completely different and got do an internship at EaglePicher, and has worked her way up from there. She is part of a team that makes batteries for companies that need them produced. She makes sure everything works correctly and if there is any issues she is able to address them before the end mission. She is helping work on the Orion Spacecraft for the Artemis ll Mission! There is a lot of care that has to be taken for the safety for the astronauts! Heather is so excited for this mission and to see it go smoothly and be accomplished. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
22-03-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Alabama officials dedicate ‘Moon Tree' in Huntsville
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WHNT) — Alabama State Park officials and the Von Braun Astronomical Society gathered on Thursday, March 20 to dedicate a Moon Tree. 'The Monte Sano Moon Tree serves as an inspirational symbol of the relationship between Earth and space,' Alex Hall, President of the Von Braun Astronomical Society, said. 'This space traveler reminds us to look to the stars and holds special meaning for many of our members who have been and continue to be involved in the exploration of space. We can't wait to see people posting selfies with the tree on social media.' The Moon Tree, located near the John Scoble Memorial Pavilion in the park, will be protected by fencing and permanent signage will be installed soon to commemorate its significance. In 2022, several different types of seeds traveled into orbit aboard the Orion Spacecraft as part of the Artemis I mission. The seeds spent more than 25 days in space before returning to Earth. 📲 to stay updated on the go. 📧 to have news sent to your inbox. The loblolly tree arrived in Huntsville this week and was immediately planted at Monte Sano State Park. Volunteers will check on it regularly to make sure the tree is in good shape. Hall said back in the early 1970s, seeds that went around the moon on Apollo 14 were similarly planted in Huntsville. 'This tree for us is such an awesome symbol of the relationship between the Astronomical Society and the park. We're in our 70th year,' Alex Hall, President of Von Braun Astronomical Society said. 'We've been up here in the park for that long, educating and inspiring people. And for us, this tree is yet another touchpoint for people to really be inspired by the heavens and look at where we're going.' The tree had been growing in a USDA forestry nursery and was shipped to Huntsville earlier in the week. Officials said the Artemis moon trees are intended to be a celebration of space exploration, with this one being planted in the Rocket City as a nod to the rocket being developed at the Marshall Space Flight Center. Visitors to the park are encouraged to use the #MonteSanoMoonTree hashtag when posting about it on social media. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
