【Pawan And Pooja (2020) Complete Web Series】

A Cold War-era spacecraft is Pawan And Pooja (2020) Complete Web Seriesheading home after a half-century adrift. 

Back in the 1970s, the Soviet Union had its sights set on Venus, sometimes known as Earth's evil twin. A thick atmosphere traps heat in a runaway greenhouse effect, making it the hottest planet in the solar system, despite being farther than Mercuryfrom the sun. 

But the Venera mission, which launched from Kazakhstan on March 31, 1972, failed long before the Soviets could attempt to touch down on the hellscape. Something went wrong with an engine burn to put the vehicle on its Venutian trajectory, and the uncrewed spacecraft got stuck in space.

---

You May Also Like

---

---

Some 53 years later, the lander is expected to finally make its descent, although not on its intended target. Researchers watching the capsule, dubbed Kosmos 482, believe it will fall back to Earth any day now. Exactly where and when are not clear, but the latest estimates suggest it could happen between May 9 and 11. 

"The uncertainty will be fairly significant right up to reentry," according to NASA. 

SEE ALSO: The most spectacular images of Venus ever captured NASA's Parker Solar Probe, which studies the sun, caught rare images of Venus' nightside during a brief encounter in February 2021. Credit: NASA / APL / NRL

Right now the mid-century relic is zooming over our heads in an oval-shaped Earth orbit, getting a bit slower with each lap. As it flies, it dips into the upper layersof the atmosphere. That drag has pulled the capsule ever lower. 

Mashable Light Speed Want more out-of-this world tech, space and science stories? Sign up for Mashable's weekly Light Speed newsletter. By clicking Sign Me Up, you confirm you are 16+ and agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Thanks for signing up!

It seems gravity is winning this space race. 

The chances of it hitting people is "infinitesimally small," said Marcin Pilinski, a research scientist at the University of Coloradowho is monitoring the spacecraft. Most likely it will end its journey plunging into an ocean, given that two-thirds of the planet is covered in water. 

Still, the object — about three feet wide and more than 1,000 pounds — poses "an unusual and noteworthy risk" compared to the typical assortment of satellite debris that rains down on Earth, according to the company Space Environment Technologies. There is a slight possibility it could re-enter over densely populated regions.

A rocket prepares to launch one of the Soviet Union's predecessor spacecraft to Venus, thought to be either the Venera 5 or 6 probes, in 1969. Credit: Sovfoto / Universal Images Group / Getty Images

Experts also think there's a chance it could withstand its fiery descent somewhat intact. The Soviet space agency, now known as Roscosmosunder Russia, built the spacecraft to meet the demands of Venus. The toxic world's climateis hot enough to melt lead, and the atmospheric pressure is 75 times that of Earth. That means Kosmos 482 is armored like a submarine. 

---

Related Stories

---

• Venus is 900 degrees. That's surprisingly not why it's bone-dry.
• The most spectacular images of Venus ever captured
• The best telescopes for gazing at stars and solar eclipses in 2024
• Why an out-of-control Chinese rocket just crashed into Earth
• Lava poured out of a volcano on Venus, scientists find

Invisible forces around Earth — ripples and waves in the atmosphere, solar storms, and weather — make tracking this object's landing difficult. Sometimes the sun shoots out bursts of energythat can temporarily bloat Earth’s atmosphere, which can alter the speeds of orbiting objects flying through it. 

Despite its rugged exterior, Kosmos 482's best case scenario is likely becoming the host for a deep-sea reef. No one is going to go look for it, Jonathan McDowell, an astrophysicist who tracks spacecraft and debris in Earth's orbit, told Mashable.

"If it falls in the ocean, the debris will sink and never be found," he said. 

Though this capsule didn't make it to Venus, others did. One of them, Venera 8, launched just four days earlier and touched down on Venus on July 22, 1972. For 63 minutes, it beamed back data to Earth. Then it fried in the all-consuming heat.

• Science
• Tech
• Shopping
• Games
• Life
• Entertainment
• Digital Culture
• Social Good

• Discover Weakly
• 10 extremely cursed foods to serve at your Halloween party
• Apple has reportedly bought the Israeli tech firm RealFace
• Ponies get matching sweaters for trip to meet their relatives
• The Midterms and the Turn Leftward
• Airbnb bans 'party houses' following Halloween shooting
• This egg inside another egg is a perfect YouTube specimen
• Alaska is having a hell of a time growing sea ice this fall
• The Invention of a Master Terrorist
• Apple pulls iOS 13.2 update for HomePods after bricking devices

• NASA successfully launches mission to slam into an asteroid
• This is the fattest of the extremely fat bears
• India vs. Ireland 2024 livestream: Watch T20 World Cup for free
• Scientists declared these animals extinct in 2021
• Best speaker deal: Get the Apple HomePod for 42% off at Verizon
• Apple may release the Vision Pro in China this June · TechNode
• Best ice cream maker deal: Save $60 on the Ninja Creami
• Best streaming deal: 50% off a year of Paramount+ with Showtime
• How to unblock Grindr
• IRS Direct File: Pilot program for taxpayers becomes permanent

• The Long Battle for Medicaid
• Maisie Williams shares extremely cute birthday wish for TV big sis, Sophie Turner
• The new Microsoft Edge browser logo sure does look familiar
• Ponies get matching sweaters for trip to meet their relatives
• Raise Your Hand
• Sit back and let the #NoBallChallenge take over your timeline
• 9 creepy tech gadgets spookier than a Halloween movie
• Mark Zuckerberg dunks on Aaron Sorkin in saddest way possible
• The Beta Rebellion
• 8chan returns with a new name and a reminder not to do illegal stuff

• Summon Your Tech Kids to the White House Day
• What to do with your leftover Halloween candy
• Turns out woman covered in blood after wrecking her car was just dressed as Carrie
• Papa John's jack
• General McMaster and the Miniskirts
• David Harbour cannot say this 1 simple word in hilarious 'Stranger Things' blooper
• Popeye's chicken sandwich is back and the lines are so damn long
• Yep, the U.S. gave a 'Make Somalia Great Again' hat to the country's president
• <em>The Voice</em> and Its Village
• 'The Social Network' writer Aaron Sorkin rips Mark Zuckerberg in open letter