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WIRED
a day ago
- Science
- WIRED
This Chinese Spacecraft Is Traveling to One of Earth's Quasi-Moons
Jun 13, 2025 5:00 AM The Tianwen-2 probe has sent a self-portrait as it heads toward one of the most enigmatic objects in our space neighborhood: the quasi-moon Kamo'oalewa. Tianwen 2's camera captured the solar wing in its fully deployed position. Photograph: China National Space Administration (CNSA) All products featured on WIRED are independently selected by our editors. However, we may receive compensation from retailers and/or from purchases of products through these links. The China National Space Administration has shared the first image from its Tianwen-2 probe, which is en route to Kamo'oalewa, a near-Earth asteroid. The image was captured by a camera onboard the probe, which is currently more than 3 million kilometers from Earth, and shows one of its wings with its solar panels deployed. It is also the first glimpse the CNSA has offered of its space probe, which launched on May 29 on a Long March 3B rocket from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in Zeyuan Town, China. The design of Tianwen-2's panels is similar in appearance to those on Lucy, NASA's space probe that is exploring asteroids floating near Jupiter. These serve to meet the power demands required for the trip. Tianwen-2's mission is to land on the surface of Kamo'oalewa, collect samples, and return to Earth. The spacecraft is scheduled to land on the asteroid's surface in July 2026. Before then, it will spend several months studying Kamo'oalewa from a safe distance, to determine its sampling area, before proceeding with landing maneuvers, a particularly difficult task given the asteroid's low gravity. Once the samples have been collected, Tianwen-2 will travel back to Earth and send its samples down to the surface in a capsule, before then attempting to use Earth's gravity as a slingshot to head toward 311P/PanSTARRS, an unusual-looking asteroid beyond Mars that has some of the characteristics of a comet, including visible tails. Tianwen-2 is expected to conduct this mission until 2035. The Enigma of the Hawaiian Quasi-Moon Kamo'oalewa is one of Earth's seven known quasi-moons—objects that appear to be orbiting our planet, but which aren't actually gravitationally bound to Earth, and are actually asteroids circling the sun in an orbit similar to Earth's. Discovered in 2016 by astronomers at the Haleakala Observatory in Hawaii, Kamo'oalewa—whose name means 'oscillating celestial object' in Hawaiian—is located approximately 4.65 million kilometers from our planet, 12 times further away from Earth than the moon. Kamo'oalewa is estimated to be roughly 40 to 100 meters in diameter, has maintained its current orbit for 100 years, and will probably maintain it for 300 more. It's hoped that Tianwen-2 can solve the mystery of Kamo'oalewa's origin. One theory is that it's a chunk of rock that broke off from the moon millions of years ago. The sampling mission will help multiple scientific investigations into the composition of rocky celestial bodies, as well as aid scientists in the search for clues about the formation of the solar system. Observational evidence and modeling suggest that Kamo'oalewa has been orbiting the sun for millions of years, albeit with an unstable trajectory. A direct exploration of this asteroid could, in addition, expand knowledge about nearby celestial objects that might potentially pose a threat to Earth. This story originally appeared on WIRED en Español and has been translated from Spanish.
Fox News
31-05-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
China launches Tianwen-2 space probe to collect samples from asteroid near Mars
China has launched a space probe that will travel to an asteroid near Mars to collect samples and find potential "groundbreaking" results. The Tianwen-2 probe launched Thursday from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in southwest China's Sichuan Province aboard the workhorse Long March 3-B rocket, according to the China National Space Administration (CNSA). The target of the Tianwen-2 will be different from its predecessor, the Tianwen-1, which launched a year ago and landed on Mars. Tianwen-2 will be aiming for the asteroid 2016 HO3, which is also known as 469219 Kamoʻoalewa, to bring back samples. The proposed 10-year plan would involve more than just this space mission as China continues to look to expand into space. Zhang Rongqiao, chief designer of the Tianwen-1, told China Central Television he plans to implement the "Tianwen-3" Mars sampling return mission in 2028, while the "Tianwen-4" will head toward Jupiter. According to The Associated Press, the asteroids, chosen for their relatively stable orbits, will hopefully offer clues about the formation of Earth, such as the origins of water. Samples from 2016HO3 are due to be returned in about two years. Even if the CNSA is going to distribute these samples to international partners like they have on previous missions, NASA wouldn't be able to receive any samples. A law passed in 2011, known as the Wolf Amendment, restricts NASA from having any cooperation with the CNSA. China also operates the three-person Tiangong, or "Heavenly Palace," space station. This gives China a step in the right direction to become a major force in the exploration of space. Its permanent station was created after being excluded from the International Space Station over U.S. national security concerns. The Associated Press contributed to this story
Yahoo
10-05-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Failed Soviet Venus lander Kosmos 482 crashes to Earth after 53 years in orbit
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. A failed Soviet Venus lander's long space odyssey has come to an end. The Kosmos 482 probe crashed to Earth today (May 10) after circling our planet for more than five decades. Reentry occurred at 2:24 a.m. ET (0624 GMT or 9:24 a.m. Moscow time) over the Indian Ocean west of Jakarta, Indonesia, according to Russia's space agency Roscosmos. Kosmos 482 appears to have fallen harmlessly into the sea. That's just one estimate, however; other space agencies and tracking organizations predicted different reentry locations, from the South Asian mainland to the eastern Pacific. It's unclear when or if we'll get a definitive answer to where Kosmos 482 came down. Astronomer Gianluca Masi of the Virtual Telescope Project caught an image of Kosmos 482 during one of its final orbits as it passed over Rome, Italy just before sunrise on May 10. In the photo, the probe is "visible as a trail entering the field of view from the top and pointing to the bottom right corner," Masi wrote on his website. "The picture is the sum of four images, this is why the trail of Cosmos 482 looks dashed." Earth isn't the planet that Kosmos 482 was supposed to land on. The spacecraft was part of the Soviet Union's Venera program, which sent a fleet of probes to Venus in the 1960s, '70s and early '80s. Kosmos 482 launched toward Earth's hellishly hot sister planet in 1972, but a problem with its rocket stranded the spacecraft in an elliptical orbit around Earth. For the next 53 years, atmospheric drag pulled the probe down slowly but surely, leading to today's dramatic denouement. Most large pieces of space junk — decrepit satellites and spent rocket bodies, for example — break apart during their fiery trips back to Earth, creating artificial meteor showers. It's possible that Kosmos 482 made it down in one piece today, however, given that it was designed to survive a high-speed trip through Venus' thick atmosphere. Kosmos 482 is about 3.3 feet (1 meter) wide and weighs about 1,190 pounds (495 kilograms). If it didn't break apart during reentry, it likely hit Earth's surface going about 150 mph (240 kph), according to Dutch satellite tracker Marco Langbroek. In that scenario, "the kinetic energy at impact is similar to that of a 40-55 cm [16 to 22 inches] large (after ablation) meteorite fragment," Langbroek wrote in a blog post recently. Related stories: — 3 big hunks of space junk crash to Earth every day — and it's only going to get worse — New images of Soviet Venus lander falling to Earth suggest its parachute may be out — Kessler Syndrome and the space debris problem Kosmos 482's fall draws attention to our planet's growing space junk problem. On average, three sizeable pieces of debris crash back to Earth every day — and that number is only going to go up. According to the European Space Agency (ESA), Earth orbit hosts about 14,240 satellites, 11,400 of which are active. Most of the operational craft belong to SpaceX's Starlink broadband megaconstellation, which currently consists of about 7,200 satellites but is growing all the time. Other megaconstellations are under construction as well. For example, Amazon just launched the first big batch of spacecraft for its Project Kuiper broadband network, which will eventually harbor 3,200 satellites, if all goes according to plan. And rockets have lofted satellites for two different Chinese megaconstellations, each of which is designed to host at least 13,000 spacecraft. "With the increasing space traffic, we expect that reentry frequencies increase further in the future," ESA officials wrote in a Kosmos 482 blog post. The risk of injury or property damage from each individual reentry is very small, given that much debris burns up in the air and the pieces that don't usually come down in the ocean or on unoccupied land. But as the reentry volume goes up, so too do the odds of a destructive impact. There are other potential consequences as well. For instance, researchers are calling attention to the pollution created by reentering satellites, which could damage Earth's ozone layer and also affect our planet's climate. Editor's note: This story was updated at 12:10 p.m. ET on May 10 to state that tracking organizations predicted several different possible reentry locales for Kosmos 482.
Forbes
10-05-2025
- Science
- Forbes
Soviet Spacecraft Cosmos 482 Location After Reentry Baffling Watchers
The likely fate of Cosmos 482. The super-tough Soviet space probe that left Earth 53 years ago on a mission for Venus it never came close to completing has finally come home, ending a very long detour in orbit. While everyone agrees that Cosmos 482 (also sometimes Kosmos 482) has stopped flying, there's little agreement on where it crash or splash landed. The Venera initiative lander launched in 1972 but a malfunction soon left it trapped around Earth. It was a subject of fascination in recent weeks after it became clear its orbit was decaying to an eventual impact. The rugged titanium spacecraft was built to withstand conditions on Venus, meaning it had a very good chance of surviving a trip through Earth's atmosphere to crash land somewhere on our surface. Space agencies and other trackers use different models to estimate where and when Cosmos 482 might have re-entered the atmosphere, and without any direct observations or much other data, these 'best guesses' are about all we have to go on about its final resting place. And these estimates place that spot either in the South Pacific, somewhere in western Europe, the Indian Ocean or in or offshore of western Australia. It's quite a range. The lack of any fireball sightings or other credible observations suggests a remote, watery resting place, which was always the most likely outcome. But the reality is we simply don't know. Cosmos 482 was set to make four passes over Germany during the reentry window. It was seen by European Space Agency radar systems during the first two of these passes, at approximately 04:30 UTC and 06:04 UTC, but never again. The expected ground track during the reentry window of Cosmos 482. "As the descent craft was not spotted by radar over Germany at the expected 07:32 UTC / 09:32 CEST pass, it is most likely that the reentry has already occurred," the ESA reported The European Union Space Surveillance and Tracking Operations Center reportedber Saturday morning that it had narrowed the re-entry window for Cosmos 482 to a total period of just 20 minutes, centered on the part of the spacecraft's journey when it would have been flying over central Europe, including the UK, Germany and Poland. However, the EUSST cautions that the entirety of the 40 minute window also encompasses a long arc stretching from northernmost South America to the Bay of Bengal. The EU ground track map for Cosmos 482. After staying quiet on the impending fate of Cosmos 482 all through the build up to its reentry, Russian leadership finally made a statement on its belief about the final resting place of the probe. Roscosmos, the Russian Space Agency reports that 'the spacecraft entered the dense layers of the atmosphere at 9:24 Moscow time, 560 km west of Middle Andaman Island, and fell into the Indian Ocean west of Jakarta.' Meanwhile, experienced orbit watcher Marco Langbroek places re-entry off the coast of Australia and US Space Force data puts it in the South Pacific. This disagreement may not be as significant as it seems. All the predictions are essentially looking at the same orbital track of Cosmos 482 and then running different models that try to account for a number of variables like space weather, atmospheric conditions, the composition of the spacecraft and other factors. Because reentering objects travel at such high speeds, small disagreements in these models lead to different results separated by thousands of miles. The reality is simply that we don't have enough data. In the past, government data from a sensor network used to detect nuclear detonations has been used to help pinpoint the impact point of space junk or meteoroids. It's still possible we might see that sort of data, helpful information from weather satellites, lightning mappers and visual sightings slowly roll in to better establish the last resting place of a venerable, if wayward, spacecraft.
CBS News
10-05-2025
- Science
- CBS News
Colorado scientist tracks Earthly plunge of a wayward Soviet-era Venus space probe
Predictions for the Earthly plunge of a wayward Soviet era Venus space probe are narrowing as the old spacecraft is expected to crash back to Earth Friday night. CBS "It's a fun event. And we really care about the research we do. And we find that such an interesting space event can kind of help highlight our research, and why we do what we do," said CU Boulder educated Aerospace Engineering Ph.D Dr. Shaylah Mutschler. Dr. Mutschler is director of the Space Weather Division as Space Environment Technologies. Space weather is different from atmospheric weather. It is affected by the sun's coronal mass ejections and solar flares. "And what happens is when events like that happen at the sun, some of them come out towards the Earth and interact with the Earth's magnetic field. And that inflates the atmosphere around Earth," said Dr. Mutschler. That perturbs solar orbits. When solar orbits shift, it can put some of the roughly 27,000 tracked objects orbiting Earth on a collision course. Mutschler and her colleagues follow the movement of about a hundred so-called, calibration satellites. The falling satellite, Kosmos 482 is one of them. "So these are defunct satellites. That means they're not maneuvering. They're just free orbiting. So when we are able to observe changes in their orbit, we can then invert those measurements to extract information about the environment that they're orbiting through." That helps them create space weather predictions. The return of Kosmos 482, once destined for Venus, is an opportunity to talk about space weather. "It's an avenue for us to talk about space, weather, and satellite operations. and how our space weather models are not perfect, which is why we don't know with perfect certainty when and where the satellite is going to re-enter." By Friday evening, experts were narrowing their prediction of a re-entry window of about three hours before and three hours after after 12:30am Saturday. They have drawn a wide swath of a potential re-entry path that incorporates little of the United States. But significant portions of Australia, India, China and Europe remained in the possible path. Sovfoto/Universal Images Group via Getty Images The spacecraft was launched in 1972. It was to land on the surface of Venus, but failed to escape Earth's orbit due to a rocket failure. That put it on an odd orbit that is actually very close to Earth at times. Among the closest of paths said Dr. Mutschler. Much of the rocket shredded in the failure, but a half-ton titanium shielded three-foot donut looking craft remains. It's plenty sturdy because it was designed to withstand the high temperatures and pressures of Venus. "So Earth is kind of a walk in the park compared to Venus," said Dr. Mutschler. It is not expected to break apart much. Seeing it is questionable, especially due to it's predicted path. But the chances of a person getting hit by its plunge remain very, very low. Still Dr. Mutschler said she'd miss it. "It's honestly one of my favorites."
