space agency Roscosmos on Saturday said a space probe that took off in March 1972 to explore the planet Venus crashed into the Indian Ocean.
never made it to Earth’s sister planet because it was dragged off course after a malfunction in its launch vehicle’s upper stage.
What do we know about the Russian probe?
Roscosmos reported that the spacecraft, known as Kosmos 482, reentered the Earth’s atmosphere at 0624 GMT/UTC and hit the ocean west of Jakarta, . There were no immediate reports of damage or recovered debris.
The European Space Agency independently supported Roscosmos’ conclusion that re-entry had occurred.
Kosmos 482 was part of the Soviet Union’s ambitious Venera program, which sent multiple probes to Venus between 1961 and 1983.
The mission was to deliver a lander equipped with scientific instruments — including a gamma-ray spectrometer, photometer, and atmospheric sensors — to study Venus’s surface and atmosphere.
What went wrong with Kosmos 482?
While several Venera probes successfully transmitted data from Venus’s surface, Kosmos 482 went off-course soon after its launch.
A technical mishap in the upper stage of the launch vehicle meant the probe, also known as Venera 4, never left Earth’s orbit and remained in a highly elliptical orbit around Earth for more than half a century before gradually descending.
The nearly 500-kilogram spacecraft, measuring approximately one meter in diameter, had been closely tracked by space agencies concerned about potential dangers upon reentry.
Experts previously warned that due to its sturdy construction — it was designed to survive Venus’s harsh atmosphere — the probe could reach Earth’s surface largely intact.
However, Roscosmos said, “Kosmos 482 no longer exists.”
Russia has said it plans to launch a new, long-term mission to Venus, known as Venera-D or Venera 17, marking a continuation of the Soviet-era program.
While Venus is about the same size as Earth, it is sometimes referred to as an “evil twin.” Extreme temperatures, crushing pressure, poisonous atmosphere, corrosive clouds, and intense geological activity make it one of the most inhospitable environments in our solar system.
Edited by Sean Sinico
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