An unmanned ISS Progress 59 cargo spacecraft, which failed to complete the ISS resupply mission last week, is heading towards Earth and is likely to crash in the Earth atmosphere tomorrow.
According to tracking data from the US Air Force, the capsule is falling at faster speeds than original predictions calculated and was reportly flying as low as 173km above the planet on 6 May.
Loaded with 3t of food, fuel, and supplies, the Progress was launched aboard a Soyuz rocket from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on 28 April.
Shortly after it reached orbit, the spacecraft lost contact with the flight controllers, and was found by tracking radars, which showed the capusle was tumbling.
Investigators are working to identify the cause of the accident.
However, Air Force’s joint space operations centre has reportedly found 44 pieces of debris near the Progress, including the craft’s discarded upper booster.
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By GlobalDataThe team believes that an explosion or other problem could have occurred when the spacecraft and its booster rocket separated.
Russian space agency Roscosmos is preparing to announce its preliminary investigation details next week.
Roscosmos said: "Only a few small pieces of structural elements could reach the planet’s surface."
The exact location where the capsule will burn up is not yet known.
The next ISS cargo mission is planned for launch no earlier than 19 June, and will carry around 5,000lb of science investigations and supplies.
