--- title: "Russian Rocket Part Careening Back Down to Earth After Failed Launch" description: "A Russian rocket booster is making its uncontrolled re-entry through the atmosphere right now — and officials aren't entirely sure where it will hit." date: "2022-01-05" modified: "2022-01-05" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/russian-rocket-uncontrolled-reentry" categories: - "Off-World" - "Space" tags: - "re-entry" - "Roscosmos" - "Russia" - "uncontrolled reentry" --- # Russian Rocket Part Careening Back Down to Earth After Failed Launch ![A Russian rocket booster is making its uncontrolled re-entry through the atmosphere right now — and officials aren't entirely sure where it will hit.]() *\Image: TASS\* A Russian rocket booster is making its uncontrolled re-entry through the atmosphere right now — and officials aren't entirely sure where its remains will make impact. According to [state-run news agency *TASS*](), the full-size payload mockup that was meant to test a new rocket stage successfully separated from an Angara-A5 carrier rocket after launching late last month. But the booster's engines failed, preventing it from adjusting its path beyond low-Earth orbit. The launch was the third test flight of Russia's Angara-A5, a heavy-lift rocket that uses more environmentally friendly fuels. Russia's space agency Roscosmos has yet to acknowledge the uncontrolled re-entry. The agency's director general Dmitry Rogozin, however, [claimed in a characteristically cryptic tweet]() that everything is "operating normally" and that "armed security for key facilities of the \[Baikonur\] cosmodrome has been strengthened." It's unclear, though, whether Rogozin's tweet is in reference to Persei's re-entry. Persei is likely still plummeting through the atmosphere at press time, and is set to make impact [some time later this afternoon](), according to Smithsonian astronomer and expert space tracker Jonathan McDowell. If all goes well, the booster will land in the Pacific Ocean. "To be clear, I do NOT regard this object as a significant risk," McDowell [tweeted](). "Reentries for a object with dry mass of about four tons may see some debris reach the ground, but not much." It's far from the first time rocket parts have plummeted back down to Earth uncontrollably. After China allowed a massive Long March 5B rocket to [make a similar re-entry last year](), NASA administrator Bill Nelson [called the country out]() for "failing to meet responsible standards regarding their space debris." Especially with the advent of reusable rocket stages such as SpaceX's Falcon 9 booster, countries are increasingly facing pressure to stop the practice — or at least to ensure that boosters are making a predictable reentry instead of allowing them to fall unpredictably. **READ MORE:** [Russian rocket part from failed launch plummeting back toward Earth]() \[*CBS News*\] **More on Russian rockets:** *[Russia Mocked SpaceX. Now It’s Reserved a Seat for a Cosmonaut]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()