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Failed Russian Mars Spacecraft to Crash Into Earth
Russia has admitted that parts of the failed Mars probe Phobus-Grunt which became stranded in orbit may come crashing back down to Earth next week. The 13.5 tonne spacecraft has been circling the Earth since November after its rocket boosters failed to ignite following take off, failing to send it on its journey to the Martian moon of Phobos. After frequent attempts to contact the rocket, the Russian space agency Roscosmos were forced to abandon the mission. Officials have now warned that 20-30 fragments of Phobos-Grunt, weighing up to 200kg, could plummet and hit Earth. The most likely parts survive are the cone-shaped sample return that is protected with a hear shield and is built to survive crash landing without a parachute.
Roscosmos has said it will be impossible to predict where these fragments could land until just a few days before re-entry. They have said that the risk may be minimal as they believe a majority of the dangerous materials will burn up upon entry to the Earth's atmosphere. Any other components that are not vaporised during re-entry are likely to harmlessly fall into the ocean or sparsely populated areas.
When writing this news I was thinking about the Glonass-satellites that are now somewhere deep in the ocean. Why is it so that when I read "Made in Russia" I am sometimes getting as sceptic as when reading "Made in China"?! Why can't we produce things that WORK??!!
