Archive for the ‘Space News’ Category
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May 6th, 2025
Venera 8 was one of a pair of Venus atmospheric lander probes designed for the spring 1972 launch window. The other mission, Cosmos 482, failed to leave Earth orbit.
Image credit: Hall of Venus/NPO Lavochkin
The fall to Earth of that old Soviet Kosmos 482 hardware is now forecast for May 10, plus/minus 1.1 days.
That’s the word from sharp-eyed satellite tracker Marco Langbroek in Leiden, the Netherlands.
“This object is the lander module from a 1972 failed Soviet Venera mission to Venus,” Langbroek posts on his SatTrackCam Leiden website. “Because of a failure of the upper stage of the rocket that launched it, it got stuck in a very elliptical orbit around Earth in 1972, instead of going to Venus.”
Image credit: Dominic Dirkx/Marco Langbroek
Hard impact
According to recently declassified Russian historic documents unearthed by Anatoly Zak, publisher of an informative website specializing in Russian space activities, Soviet flight control specialists purposely separated the 1,058 pound (480 kilogram) egg-shaped Venus lander from the stranded main spacecraft back in 1972.
“As this is a lander, which is in a semi-globular Titanium protective shell, a bit of a metal bucket,” notes Langbroek, fabricated to survive passage through the thick Venus atmosphere, “it is possible that it will survive reentry through the Earth atmosphere intact, and impact intact.”
Langbroek adds that it likely will be a hard impact.
Venera 8 artwork depicts lander on Venus surface – likely similar to Kosmos 482 hardware.
Image Credit: NPO Lavochkin
Parachute prognosis
“I doubt the parachute deployment system will still work after 53 years and with dead batteries. There are many uncertain factors in whether the lander will survive reentry though, including that this will be a long shallow reentry trajectory, and the age of the object,” Langbroek believes.
On that score, another satellite tracker, Ralf Vandebergh, also of the Netherlands, speculates that his imagery may show the descent lander’s parachute tangling in space. If so, it would be destroyed during the heated plunge to Earth.
Image credit: Ralf Vandebergh
When and where?
The precise reentry date and where the leftover descent craft hardware would fall to Earth are unknowns.
“With an orbital inclination of 51.95 degrees, the reentry can occur anywhere between latitude 52 N and 52 S,” Langbroek points out. However, to what degree solar activity will play in influencing the timing and whereabouts of the reentry is an uncertainty.
“Stronger solar activity will mean an earlier reentry, lower solar activity a later reentry,” Langbroek states.
Coming in over Europe?
Also keeping a watchful eye on the incoming leftover is The Aerospace Corporation’s Center for Orbital and Reentry Debris Studies (CORDS). Their current predicted reentry time is May 10, 04:42 UTC ± 19 hours.
The CORDS prediction is that the reentry is to occur sometime this weekend, showing the object reentering over Europe at 12:42 a.m. US Eastern Time this Saturday.
Yellow Icon – location of object at midpoint of reentry window
Blue Line – ground track uncertainty prior to middle of the reentry window (ticks at 5-minute intervals)
Yellow Line – ground track uncertainty after middle of the reentry window (ticks at 5-minute intervals)
Pink Icon (if applicable) – vicinity of eyewitness sighting or recovered debris
Note: Possible reentry locations lie anywhere along the blue and yellow ground track. Areas not under the line are not exposed to the debris.
Image credit: CORDS
“Because Cosmos 482 is defunct, we expect it to perform an uncontrolled reentry as Earth’s atmosphere finally causes its orbit to decay, versus landing deliberately in the ocean or in a remote area,” observes The Aerospace “Kickstage” posting.
Because the object was originally designed to land on Venus—a much harsher atmosphere and environment to survive than Earth’s—“it is possible Cosmos 482 could survive reentry to the extent that parts of it strike the surface rather than burn up entirely,” observes the “Kickstage” posting.
Risk is nonzero
As for the risk posed to people on the ground, “while the risk is nonzero, any one individual on Earth is far likelier to be struck by lightning than to be injured by Cosmos 482.”
How likely is it that the decent lander plops down in your yard?
“We definitely do not expect Cosmos 482 to land in your yard specifically. Given the nature of its orbit, most of the Earth is still in play for its reentry, and consequently it is far more likely to land in the ocean or an unpopulated area,” the posting adds.
Soviet Union’s Venera 8 museum display.
Image credit: NPO Lavochkin
Finders keepers?
On the other hand, if the object defies the odds and does land in your yard, please don’t touch it!
“It could potentially be hazardous, and it is best to notify your local authorities,” the posting notes.
As for taking the finders keepers approach, don’t get your hopes up.
“There is a United Nations treaty that governs found debris—the 1967 Outer Space Treaty. It states that countries keep ownership of objects they launch into space, even after those objects reenter and return to Earth. The country that launched the object in this case is Russia, which could request the return of any parts that survived reentry. It is also worth noting that the treaty says that the launching country is also internationally liable for damages,” the Kickstage item explains.
Soviet Venera 8 landing capsule. Venera 8 was one of a pair of Venus atmospheric lander probes designed for the spring 1972 launch window. The other mission (Cosmos 482 – 1972-023A) failed to leave Earth orbit.
Image credit: NASA/NSSDCA
Posted in 
Puzzling out budget ballistics: Image credit: Leonard David
Last week saw the release of President Trump’s Fiscal Year 2026 proposed budget blueprint. It is viewed as a budgetary bombshell, calling for a 24.3% reduction to NASA’s top-line funding and slashing the space agency’s science budget by 47%.
Reactions to the budget centers on it being reckless and destructive, one that undercuts American leadership in probing our solar system and the universe writ large.
Image credit: White House
Phasing out, retiring, cancelled
Among NASA projects cross-haired by the White House budget:
— Phasing out the government-backed Space Launch System (SLS) mega-booster, retired after an Artemis 3 “rebooting” of humans on the Moon
— Retiring the Orion crew capsule, and doing away with the Gateway lunar space station.
— Cancelling the NASA Mars Sample Return mission, labeled in the White House budget as “grossly over budget and whose goals would be achieved by human missions to Mars.”
More details can be viewed in my new Sky and Telescope story – “Are Proposed Science Cuts a Call-to-Arms? Or Armageddon? – Deep cuts to NASA, the National Science Foundation, and other science-funding institutions are causing grave concerns in the community” at:
https://skyandtelescope.org/astronomy-news/are-proposed-science-cuts-a-call-to-arms-or-armageddon/
Moon to Mars?
Image credit: NASA
Image credit: CCTV/Inside Outer Space screengrab
The just returned to Earth Shenzhou-19 crew arrived in Beijing by plane on Wednesday of last week and are now entering a period of medical quarantine and health evaluation.
Astronauts Cai Xuzhe, Song Lingdong and Wang Haoze landed on Wednesday at the Dongfeng landing site in north China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. The China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) said the crew is in good health after living in space for 183 days.
Landing spot change
The mission’s three crew members touched down safely at the Dongfeng landing site, a return that had been postponed by a day due to unfavorable weather conditions on the ground.
Image credit: CCTV/Inside Outer Space screengrab
That bad weather did move the planned landing spot for the taikonaut trio from the west zone to the eastern zone of the landing site – a change that meant recovery team members had to quickly scramble to the new location.
Samples back on Earth
The Shenzhou-19 mission generated over 102 samples of 13 types now back on Earth. Studies of samples are expected to produce scientific output in fundamental research, new materials, space radiation effects and hypomagnetic biological mechanisms.
For example, 22 types of experiment samples of space materials are in four categories that include tungsten high entropy alloy, high-strength steel, lunar soil reinforcement material, and gel composite lubricating material.
Image credit: CCTV/Inside Outer Space screengrab
Twenty of the samples are from life science experiments, and include bone cells and osteoblasts, human bronchial epithelial cells, early embryos of humans and animals, protein samples and fruit flies. This marks the largest variety of biological samples returned to Earth since the Chinese space station began operating in late 2022.
The biologically sensitive samples were rushed to Beijing immediately after the spacecraft touched down at the Dongfeng landing site.
In-orbit exposure
According to China Central Television (CCTV), the Technology and Engineering Center for Space Utilization under the Chinese Academy of Sciences said that the studies of experiment samples will promote the production and application of key materials including those for the next-generation aero-engine turbine blades and nano-electronic components.
Image credit: CCTV/Inside Outer Space screengrab
Additionally, some of the space material samples had undergone in-orbit exposure to help reveal the mechanisms that cause damage to the samples’ microstructures, their performance degradation, as well as functional failure in space.
CCTV adds that statistics show that over 70 percent of the malfunctions of spacecraft were directly or indirectly caused by the space environment.
Space radiation studies
Pei Weiwei is an associate researcher at the State Key Laboratory of Radiation Medicine and Protection of Soochow University. After a special handover ceremony was held where scientists received the samples brought back by the Shenzhou-19 space mission, Pei said:
“The carcinogenicity of space radiation has always been a focus of our research, and the epithelial cells of the lungs are the most susceptible to tumors. So we are studying the evolution of lung epithelial cells into tumor cells in space radiation and some of its mechanisms.”
Risk assessment system
Pei added that, based on this data, the aim is to establish a space radiation risk assessment system suitable for Chinese astronauts. “At the same time, we hope to provide some theoretical support for radiation monitoring and a complete radiation protection system,” he told CCTV.
Handover ceremonies between crews.
Image credit: CCTV/Inside Outer Space screengrab
Pei said that such experiments and related research can also offer new ideas to human health problems back on Earth, such as the diagnosis and treatment of lung cancer. It will also provide a new theoretical basis and experimental support for exploring health problems such as osteoporosis, muscle atrophy and decreased cardiovascular function, he added.
The recently-arrived Shenzhou-20 crew has now taken over command of the space station.
Go to this informative CCTV video at:
Venera 8 artwork.
Image Credit: NPO Lavochkin
That soon-to-reenter Cosmos 482 is getting increased attention by satellite trackers – and new imagery provides some interesting details.
The former Soviet Union’s Cosmos 482 was lofted back in 1972. But that country’s attempted Venus probe ran amuck during its rocket-assisted toss to the cloud-veiled world.
Image credit: Ralf Vandebergh
Payload leftovers that were marooned in Earth orbit, specifically the spacecraft’s lander module/capsule, were intended to parachute onto the hellish landscape of Venus.
The question is whether or not that module/capsule will remain intact and make it through Earth’s atmosphere to reach the surface?
For more details on what’s being seen prior to the probe’s nose-dive to Earth, go to my new Space.com story — New images of Soviet Venus lander falling to Earth suggest its parachute may be out – at:
Venera 8 was one of a pair of Venus atmospheric lander probes designed for the spring 1972 launch window. The other mission, Cosmos 482, failed to leave Earth orbit.
Image credit: Hall of Venus/NPO Lavochkin
Image credit: Ralf Vandebergh
That soon-to-reenter Cosmos 482 is getting increased attention by satellite trackers – and new imagery provides some interesting details.
The former Soviet Union’s Cosmos 482 was lofted back in 1972. But that country’s attempted Venus probe ran amuck during its rocket-assisted toss to the cloud-veiled world. Payload leftovers were marooned in Earth orbit, specifically the spacecraft’s lander module/capsule intended to parachute onto the hellish landscape of Venus.
Venera 8 was one of a pair of Venus atmospheric lander probes designed for the spring 1972 launch window. The other mission, Cosmos 482, failed to leave Earth orbit.
Image credit: Hall of Venus/NPO Lavochkin
Uncertain factors
“As this is a lander that was designed to survive passage through the Venus atmosphere, it is possible that it will survive reentry through the Earth atmosphere intact, and impact intact,” reports Marco Langbroek of SatTrackCam Leiden, the Netherlands.
“There are many uncertain factors in this though, including that this will be a long shallow reentry trajectory and the age of the object,” observes Langbroek.
Langbroek now pegs the current nominal forecast for its reentry on May 10, plus/minus 3.1 days.
Venera 8 artwork.
Image Credit: NPO Lavochkin
Compact ball
Meanwhile, satellite tracker Ralf Vandebergh of the Netherlands, has snagged a first set of images of only the capsule in Earth orbit. “We see a clear compact ball! This set is already fantastic, I think,” he tells Inside Outer Space.
Those first set of high resolution images, Vandebergh said, are compared to a Starlink satellite bus in operational orbit. He notes that Cosmos 482 is roughly 80 miles (130 kilometers) closer than the Starlink bus which, according to data, is around 1.3 meters by 2.7 meters.
Earlier imagery of the lost-to-space Cosmos 482.
Image credit: Ralf Vandebergh
Parachute speculation
Vandebergh said he is stunned by what he is seeing on collected imagery frames.
“Several frames seems to confirm what I thought to see in the 2014 images, [that] there is a compact ball but several frames show a weak elongated structure at one particular side of the ball,” Vandebergh added. He has speculated in the past it was possible that this might be the parachute that came out.
Earlier imagery of the lost-to-space Cosmos 482.
Image credit: Ralf Vandebergh
“It is not impossible that the object is tumbling,” Vandebergh notes, “so the chute would be sometimes visible,” assuming that it is the chute. He cautioned that more time is needed to better analyze what’s showing up in the imagery.
That best analysis of the imagery is a work in progress, Vandebergh concluded, so stay tuned!
Image credit: Marco Langbroek/Dominic Dirkx
Wait-a-Minute!
Image credit: Barbara David
A U.S. Senate committee is set to vote tomorrow on Jared Isaacman, the Trump Administration’s selectee for NASA administrator.
That’s one small step for Isaacman in true wait-a-minute style deliberation.
On Wednesday, April 30, U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, will convene a full committee Executive Session to vote on whether to advance Isaacman’s nomination to lead NASA.
Entrepreneur Jared Isaacman, President Trump’s nominee to be NASA administrator, appears April 9 before the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and testifies that NASA is a “force multiplier for science.”
NASA / Bill Ingalls
Isaacman appeared before the committee on April 9. In written answers to questions, Isaacman revealed more of his views regarding his handling of NASA issues.
Isaacman did call the projected Trump administration’s planned cuts to NASA not “an optimal outcome.”
REPUBLICAN QUESTIONS FOR THE RECORD – Go to:
https://www.commerce.senate.gov/services/files/5C22B600-2AAB-4ACF-AE89-FA78A04E602D
DEMOCRATIC QUESTIONS FOR THE RECORD – Go to:
https://www.commerce.senate.gov/services/files/13EEBAAD-3523-45C8-BB97-EB1031A01741
Image credit: NASA
What now?
As for taking over NASA, there’s still some question as to when Isaacman does get confirmed – and what space agency decision-making is still to come.
“Tomorrow is just a committee vote. It could be days, weeks or months before the full Senate votes. We’ll see what the issues are then,” said Marcia Smith, founder and editor of the informative SpacePolicyOnline.com at: https://spacepolicyonline.com/
If days, Smith added, the top job will be seeing if it’s too late for Isaacman to have any influence on the budget request. “Once Trump sends it to Congress he’ll have to support whatever it says.”
To watch the livestream on Wednesday, April 30, at 10:00 a.m. Eastern Standard Time, go to:
https://www.commerce.senate.gov/
Meanwhile, take a look at this just-issued NASA release, “NASA Soars to New Heights in First 100 Days of Trump Administration.” Go to:
Wait-a- minute, Congress at work.
Image credit: Barbara David
NASA has issued a new volume, Governing the Moon – A History, part of a series of monographs in aerospace history and a report for NASA’s Office of Technology, Policy, and Strategy, closed down in March 2025.
This invaluable read is authored by Stephen Buono, a Collegiate Assistant Professor in the Social Sciences at the University of Chicago.
The monograph is built around five chapters: The Moon’s Lawyer, Aldo Armando Cocca and the Germ of a Treaty; “A Rather Clumsy Attempt” – Moscow’s Moon Treaty; New York, Geneva, New York – The United Nations Negotiations; The Doldrums – Limping Toward the Finish Line, and “Armageddon for the Free Enterprise System” – The Moon Treaty in the American Scene.
Buono illuminates the treaty’s deep origins, the contributions of international space lawyers, the details of the negotiating process, the role played by the United States in shaping the final text, and the contributions of the treaty’s single most important author, Aldo Armando Cocca.
Nuanced and complicated
Known as the Moon Treaty, the Agreement Governing the Activities of States on the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies was adopted in 1979 by the United Nations General Assembly.
Nine candidate landing regions for NASA’s Artemis III mission The background image of the lunar South Pole terrain within the nine regions is a mosaic of LRO (Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter) WAC (Wide Angle Camera) images.
Image credit: NASA
However, negotiated over a decade, the treaty was not ultimately ratified.
Buono explains that this report, “if it is as useful to NASA as I intended, has provided a history of the Moon Treaty more nuanced and complicated than its politization in the 1980s may have at first suggested.”
Furthermore, Buono states that he has sought to illuminate the deep origins of the treaty; the contributions of international space lawyers to its intellectual maturation; the details of the negotiating process; as well as the role played by the United States in shaping the final text.
“As NASA prepares to launch humans to the Moon once more,” Buono continues, “it is my humble wish that the narrative presented here proves meaningful to the administration’s continued work on space governance.”
This publication is available as a free download at:
Artistic depiction of NASA astronauts at the lunar south pole carrying out early work to establish an Artemis Base Camp.
Image credit: NASA
Handover ceremonies between crews.
Image credit: CCTV/Inside Outer Space screengrab
Onboard China’s space station, crews have completed a handover for managing, caring for, and maintaining the orbital outpost.
The commander of the Shenzhou-20 crew thanked the Shenzhou-19 trio for their meticulous care of the space station as they prepare for returning to Earth this coming Tuesday.
The Shenzhou-20 crew consists of Chen Dong, Chen Zhongrui and Wang Jie.
Landing site preparations
The Shenzhou-19 crew — Cai Xuzhe, Song Lingdong, and Wang Haoze – are scheduled to touch down April 29 at the Dongfeng landing site in north China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, marking completion of a six-month mission aboard China’s Tiangong space station.
Late last week, a final comprehensive drill was conducted at the landing site. According to China Central Television (CCTV) the entire return and landing process of the Shenzhou-19 crewed spacecraft is expected to take about 50 minutes.
Go to this video that spotlights the handover ceremonies at:
Image credit: CGTN/Inside Outer Space screengrab
China’s Wu Weiren, chief designer of China’s lunar exploration program, reports that a total of 17 countries and international organizations, as well as over 50 international research institutions have joined an International Lunar Research Station (ILRS) program initiated by that country.
China welcomes international participants to join the ILRS, said Wu.
China has previously announced plans for a crewed mission to the Moon to take place before 2030, and preparations are progressing smoothly, states the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA).
Image credit: CGTN/Inside Outer Space screengrab
Phase Four
Wu recently shared details on the construction of a Moon research station with comprehensive facilities and international participation.
“We hope that on the basis of Phase Four of our lunar exploration program, there will be a large international scientific-technological research project initiated by China, with the participation of multiple countries,” said Wu.
The research station at the lunar south pole will be capable of automatically supplying power for itself and making telecommunications available on site.
Lunar south pole.
Image credit: CGTN/Inside Outer Space screengrab
“Centered around the lunar south pole, it will cover both the lunar surface and the lunar orbit, and can extend to farther locations. For example, the research station will be equipped with multiple systems including lunar rovers, landers, hoppers, and networks. Once assembled, we will be able to conduct long-term unmanned exploration there, as well as accommodate short-term human presence,” Wu said.
Wu added that he believes that ultimately the construction of a lunar research station would serve China’s future Mars missions. “I believe this is a very important goal for us,” Wu said in an interview with China Global Television Network (CGTN).
Key areas
There are several key areas of international cooperation in putting in place an ILRS, Wu said.
China lunar research station planning underway.
Image credit: CCTV/Inside Outer Space screengrab
Technical level: Working together to develop and implement shared plans. Technological breakthroughs are essential, particularly to tackle the harsh conditions of the lunar South Pole, including challenges related to lighting, power supply, and extreme temperature variations.
Cooperation on scientific instruments: Scientific exploration using instrument payloads, to collaborate with China in this endeavor. Joint research is encouraged, but for those who prefer to conduct independent studies, China is also willing to assist in delivering their instruments to the lunar surface.
Scientific data: Once obtained, this data will be analyzed collaboratively or shared with participating countries for joint research.
Collaboration at ground headquarters: Located in China, the headquarters welcomes scientists from around the world for academic exchange.
Go to this informative video on China’s lunar plans at:
Image credit: Firefly Aerospace
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colorado – Lessons learned and on-the-spot surprises from the first fully successful commercial lunar lander mission bolsters the chances of long-term robotic and human operations on the moon.
The Firefly Aerospace Blue Ghost Mission 1 safely touched down March 2 within the targeted Mare Crisium landing zone.
Blue Ghost completed more than 14 days of surface operations during 346 hours of daylight, stretching its lifetime for a little over 5 hours into the super-chilly lunar night.
Image credit: Firefly Aerospace
For more details, go to my new Space.com story — ‘We learned so much that we didn’t know’: Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost moon lander mission was full of surprises” – at:
Image credit: Firefly Aerospace/Inside Outer Space screengrab
