GISTDAs ZIRCON System: Tracking the Uncontrolled Re-entry of the Cosmos 482 Satellite .

News of the re-entry of the defunct Soviet Union's Cosmos 482 satellite has sparked public interest in Thailand, especially concerning the safety and risks posed by objects in space, throughout this past month.

GISTDA, or the Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency (Public Organization), has been monitoring the uncontrolled re-entry of the satellite. It utilizes a system developed by Thai engineers to track and monitor deep space, providing continuous alerts to protect the assets and interests of the Thai people.

The core system for tracking objects in Earth's orbit is ZIRCON, developed by GISTDA's Space Technology Research Center (S-TREC). It analyzes orbits and manages space traffic, which includes operational satellites, decommissioned ones, as well as rocket remnants and various space debris orbiting at high speeds.

The Cosmos 482 satellite was launched on March 31, 1972, with the original mission of being a Venus lander. However, the craft never left Earth's orbit due to a rocket booster failure and has remained in orbit ever since. Its orbit has been gradually decaying due to atmospheric drag, posing a risk of an uncontrolled re-entry on May 10, 2025.

Upon learning of the situation, the GISTDA research team used the ZIRCON system to continuously track the position of the Cosmos 482 satellite. Dr. Sittiporn Charnnamsin, Director of the Space Technology Research Center, revealed that, "GISTDA's space traffic management system can identify risks from space objects 2 months in advance. It relies on data from the space tracking and monitoring system known as GARNET, which monitors the positions of objects in deep space, to plan response measures, such as adjusting the orbits of our satellites."

For tracking Cosmos 482, precise analysis and prediction of the impact point require waiting until the satellite descends to an altitude of approximately 130 kilometers above the Earth. As Thailand was identified as a potential risk area, GISTDA utilized the ZIRCON system to continuously track the satellite's position and provide the public with constant updates.

Ultimately, GISTDA's ZIRCON system predicted the re-entry time for Cosmos 482 to be 12:35 PM on May 10, 2025, Thailand time, with a margin of error of approximately 30 minutes. The predicted impact location was over the Pacific Ocean, which was consistent with data from other international space agencies also tracking the satellite's re-entry.

In addition to demonstrating its potential to monitor satellites returning to Earth and to detect objects in space that may affect Thailand, the ZIRCON system also plays an important role in space traffic management and collision warning to reduce the risk of collisions in space with Thai satellites, such as THEOS and THEOS-2, and there are plans to develop it to be ready to provide services for other Thai satellites in the future.

Currently, the Space Technology Research Center is developing other systems alongside ZIRCON, such as AMETHYST for Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) management and Jasper for space weather forecasting. These projects aim to benefit both government agencies and the Thai public, as well as to develop the potential of space personnel to meet international standards.

Based on Cosmos 482, it is a case study that demonstrates the readiness of GISTDA and Thai engineers to effectively monitor and prepare for space threats, as well as protect the country's interests and safety from various space threats that affect Thailand and our world.