A Soviet-era interplanetary spacecraft weighing almost half a ton will fall to Earth in the coming days. This is the landing module of the Cosmos 482 probe, which was launched to Venus in 1972, but remained in Earth’s orbit, the BBC reports.

The aforesaid spacecraft was launched into space from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in the early morning of March 31, 1972. It was a backup version of another spacecraft, and both were launched into space as part of the Venera 8 program. Both devices were completely identical in terms of equipment and characteristics.

Parts of the fuel tanks made of titanium left Earth’s orbit within a few days and landed in New Zealand. But parts of this spacecraft and the fourth stage of its rocket, also known as Block L, remained in an elongated elliptical orbit. It highest point (apogee) was somewhere at 9,800 km, while the lowest (perigee) was about 210 km.

The descent module itself was designed for a more difficult re-entry into Venus' atmosphere, so its heat shield and pressurized compartment are likely to survive the entry. But it is unlikely that the device will be completely preserved.

Calculations based on orbital parameters show that the area of fall of the debris is almost entirely expected to be on land—more precisely, on the territories of Egypt, Syria, Turkey and Azerbaijan, so there is a risk that they will fall on residential areas, says Georgy Trishkin, the author of the Texas Herald Telegram channel dedicated to space launches.

The fall of the landing module of the Cosmos 482 probe, according to various estimates, will occur between May 8 and 14.