# Kosmos 482

> Soviet Venera spacecraft which failed to escape Earth orbit

**Wikidata**: [Q3242405](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q3242405)  
**Wikipedia**: [English](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kosmos_482)  
**Source**: https://4ort.xyz/entity/kosmos-482

## Summary
Kosmos 482 was a Soviet spacecraft launched in 1972 as part of the Venera program, designed to explore Venus but failed to escape Earth's orbit. Weighing 1,184 kilograms, it was a 3MV-class probe manufactured by NPO Lavochkin. Following a failed rocket stage separation, the spacecraft remained in low Earth orbit until its atmospheric entry on May 5, 1981.

## Key Facts
- **Classification:** Soviet Venera spacecraft (3MV class) which failed to escape Earth orbit.
- **Launch Date:** March 31, 1972, at 04:02:33 UTC from Baikonur Cosmodrome Site 31.
- **Mass:** 1,184 kilograms.
- **Launch Vehicle:** Molniya-M rocket (serial number 7801421-513).
- **Operator:** Academy of Sciences of the USSR.
- **Manufacturer:** NPO Lavochkin.
- **Orbital Decay:** Atmospheric entry occurred on May 5, 1981.
- **Designations:** COSPAR ID 1972-023A; NSSDCA ID 1972-023A; SCN 05919.
- **Alternate Names:** Cosmos 482, 4V-1 No. 671, V-72 No. 2.

## FAQs
### Q: What was the purpose of Kosmos 482?
A: Kosmos 482 was intended to be a Venus probe. As part of the Soviet Venera program, its mission was likely to study the planet Venus, similar to other 3MV-class uncrewed probes.

### Q: Why did Kosmos 482 fail?
A: The spacecraft failed because it did not achieve the necessary velocity to escape Earth's orbit. This mission failure resulted in it being designated "Kosmos" rather than "Venera," a standard Soviet practice for spacecraft stranded in Earth orbit.

### Q: When did Kosmos 482 re-enter Earth's atmosphere?
A: According to orbital data, the object underwent atmospheric entry and decayed from orbit on May 5, 1981, more than nine years after its launch.

## Why It Matters
Kosmos 482 serves as a significant case study in the history of planetary exploration and the Soviet space program's "Kosmos" designation strategy. While the Venera program is celebrated for its successful landings on Venus, failures like Kosmos 482 highlight the technical challenges of interplanetary travel during the Space Race. The spacecraft's specific designation as "Kosmos" illustrates the Soviet protocol of obscuring failed planetary missions by naming them after their generic Earth-orbit satellite series.

Furthermore, the mission's hardware details—specifically its manufacture by NPO Lavochkin and its launch on a Molniya-M rocket—provide crucial data for historians tracking the evolution of Soviet launch systems and probe design (the 3MV class). The longevity of its orbit (1972–1981) and the inclusion of a specialized descent craft also make it a point of interest regarding orbital debris and the durability of deep-space hardware components left in Earth orbit.

## Notable For
- **Mission Failure:** Being a Venera program probe that failed to leave Earth's gravity.
- **Designation Change:** Receiving the "Kosmos" designation (used for Earth-orbiting satellites) despite being built for interplanetary travel.
- **Descent Craft:** Containing a "Kosmos 482 Descent Craft" component, likely a lander designed to survive Venusian atmospheric conditions.
- **Launch Vehicle:** Utilizing the Molniya-M launcher, a workhorse of the Soviet planetary program.
- **Orbital Longevity:** Remaining in orbit for nearly a decade before decaying in 1981.

## Body

### Mission Context and Design
Kosmos 482 was an uncrewed space probe of the **3MV class**, a design series used for Soviet lunar and planetary missions. Manufactured by **NPO Lavochkin**, the spacecraft had a total mass of **1,184 kilograms**. It was equipped with two solar arrays for power generation and a KDU-414 propulsion system. The probe was part of the broader **Venera** family, designed by the Soviet Union to study Venus.

### Launch and Failure
The spacecraft launched on **March 31, 1972**, at 04:02:33 UTC from **Baikonur Cosmodrome Site 31**. It was lifted by a **Molniya-M** rocket (block 7801421-513). While the initial launch stages were successful, the final stage (Block L) failed to fire for the necessary duration or timing to achieve escape velocity. Consequently, the probe separated into a high elliptical Earth orbit rather than a heliocentric orbit toward Venus.

### Components and Orbit
The payload included a main bus and a **Descent Craft** (landed), engineered to withstand the extreme atmospheric pressure of Venus. Following the launch failure, the object was cataloged as **1972-023A**. It remained in Earth orbit for over nine years. The main object's orbit decayed, resulting in **atmospheric entry** on **May 5, 1981**.

### Identifiers and Aliases
The spacecraft is known by several identifiers and aliases in various databases:
*   **Scientific Notation:** 4V-1 No. 671, V-72 No. 2
*   **Catalog Numbers:** COSPAR 1972-023A, SCN 05919
*   **Linguistic Variants:** 宇宙482號, 코스모스 482호

## References

1. [Source](https://space.skyrocket.de/doc_sdat/venera-v72.htm)
2. Jonathan's Space Report
3. [The Space Review: Kosmos 482: questions around a failed Venera lander from 1972 still orbiting Earth (but not for long). The Space Review. 2022](https://www.thespacereview.com/article/4384/1)
4. Freebase Data Dumps. 2013
5. [Source](https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraft/display.action?id=1972-023A)