Have there ever been people trapped in a shut down spacecraft?











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I was reading some one-line sad stories and came across this one:




Goodbye mission control, thanks for trying.




So I was wondering if there have ever been people trapped in a spacecraft without a way back to earth, doomed to float around in space until they meet their end.



I'm specifically asking about floating around until food/water run out.



I do not intend to take the death of astronauts lightly, I was just curious if something like this has happened.










share|improve this question
























  • Although the question seems specifically to be about floating around in space until resources ran out; not about fire, explosions, crashing, rapid decompression etc. This makes it more difficult than a simple Google search, and I don't see any such incidents from a quick glance through that Wikipedia page. @Darnok can you edit your question to be more specific (and leave out the drama)?
    – Jan Doggen
    Dec 4 at 12:59








  • 10




    Voskhod 2 reentry engines failed to fire when it was to end the flight and bring the spacecraft down, but the cosmonauts managed to fix them and perform the reentry an orbit later (and a couple thousand kilometers from the planned landing site, right into frozen taiga.)
    – SF.
    Dec 4 at 17:04










  • There are conspiracy theories concerning lost cosmonauts (see particularly the Judica-Cordiglia brothers), but these have been pretty thoroughly debunked.
    – Michael Seifert
    Dec 4 at 18:29










  • Thanks for the edit!
    – uhoh
    Dec 4 at 19:10










  • How about the Salyut that lost power and a crew docked to revive it? I forget which one specically.
    – geoffc
    Dec 4 at 20:04















up vote
26
down vote

favorite
2












I was reading some one-line sad stories and came across this one:




Goodbye mission control, thanks for trying.




So I was wondering if there have ever been people trapped in a spacecraft without a way back to earth, doomed to float around in space until they meet their end.



I'm specifically asking about floating around until food/water run out.



I do not intend to take the death of astronauts lightly, I was just curious if something like this has happened.










share|improve this question
























  • Although the question seems specifically to be about floating around in space until resources ran out; not about fire, explosions, crashing, rapid decompression etc. This makes it more difficult than a simple Google search, and I don't see any such incidents from a quick glance through that Wikipedia page. @Darnok can you edit your question to be more specific (and leave out the drama)?
    – Jan Doggen
    Dec 4 at 12:59








  • 10




    Voskhod 2 reentry engines failed to fire when it was to end the flight and bring the spacecraft down, but the cosmonauts managed to fix them and perform the reentry an orbit later (and a couple thousand kilometers from the planned landing site, right into frozen taiga.)
    – SF.
    Dec 4 at 17:04










  • There are conspiracy theories concerning lost cosmonauts (see particularly the Judica-Cordiglia brothers), but these have been pretty thoroughly debunked.
    – Michael Seifert
    Dec 4 at 18:29










  • Thanks for the edit!
    – uhoh
    Dec 4 at 19:10










  • How about the Salyut that lost power and a crew docked to revive it? I forget which one specically.
    – geoffc
    Dec 4 at 20:04













up vote
26
down vote

favorite
2









up vote
26
down vote

favorite
2






2





I was reading some one-line sad stories and came across this one:




Goodbye mission control, thanks for trying.




So I was wondering if there have ever been people trapped in a spacecraft without a way back to earth, doomed to float around in space until they meet their end.



I'm specifically asking about floating around until food/water run out.



I do not intend to take the death of astronauts lightly, I was just curious if something like this has happened.










share|improve this question















I was reading some one-line sad stories and came across this one:




Goodbye mission control, thanks for trying.




So I was wondering if there have ever been people trapped in a spacecraft without a way back to earth, doomed to float around in space until they meet their end.



I'm specifically asking about floating around until food/water run out.



I do not intend to take the death of astronauts lightly, I was just curious if something like this has happened.







crewed-spaceflight history astronauts






share|improve this question















share|improve this question













share|improve this question




share|improve this question








edited Dec 4 at 19:42









Glorfindel

141119




141119










asked Dec 4 at 11:15









darnok

23926




23926












  • Although the question seems specifically to be about floating around in space until resources ran out; not about fire, explosions, crashing, rapid decompression etc. This makes it more difficult than a simple Google search, and I don't see any such incidents from a quick glance through that Wikipedia page. @Darnok can you edit your question to be more specific (and leave out the drama)?
    – Jan Doggen
    Dec 4 at 12:59








  • 10




    Voskhod 2 reentry engines failed to fire when it was to end the flight and bring the spacecraft down, but the cosmonauts managed to fix them and perform the reentry an orbit later (and a couple thousand kilometers from the planned landing site, right into frozen taiga.)
    – SF.
    Dec 4 at 17:04










  • There are conspiracy theories concerning lost cosmonauts (see particularly the Judica-Cordiglia brothers), but these have been pretty thoroughly debunked.
    – Michael Seifert
    Dec 4 at 18:29










  • Thanks for the edit!
    – uhoh
    Dec 4 at 19:10










  • How about the Salyut that lost power and a crew docked to revive it? I forget which one specically.
    – geoffc
    Dec 4 at 20:04


















  • Although the question seems specifically to be about floating around in space until resources ran out; not about fire, explosions, crashing, rapid decompression etc. This makes it more difficult than a simple Google search, and I don't see any such incidents from a quick glance through that Wikipedia page. @Darnok can you edit your question to be more specific (and leave out the drama)?
    – Jan Doggen
    Dec 4 at 12:59








  • 10




    Voskhod 2 reentry engines failed to fire when it was to end the flight and bring the spacecraft down, but the cosmonauts managed to fix them and perform the reentry an orbit later (and a couple thousand kilometers from the planned landing site, right into frozen taiga.)
    – SF.
    Dec 4 at 17:04










  • There are conspiracy theories concerning lost cosmonauts (see particularly the Judica-Cordiglia brothers), but these have been pretty thoroughly debunked.
    – Michael Seifert
    Dec 4 at 18:29










  • Thanks for the edit!
    – uhoh
    Dec 4 at 19:10










  • How about the Salyut that lost power and a crew docked to revive it? I forget which one specically.
    – geoffc
    Dec 4 at 20:04
















Although the question seems specifically to be about floating around in space until resources ran out; not about fire, explosions, crashing, rapid decompression etc. This makes it more difficult than a simple Google search, and I don't see any such incidents from a quick glance through that Wikipedia page. @Darnok can you edit your question to be more specific (and leave out the drama)?
– Jan Doggen
Dec 4 at 12:59






Although the question seems specifically to be about floating around in space until resources ran out; not about fire, explosions, crashing, rapid decompression etc. This makes it more difficult than a simple Google search, and I don't see any such incidents from a quick glance through that Wikipedia page. @Darnok can you edit your question to be more specific (and leave out the drama)?
– Jan Doggen
Dec 4 at 12:59






10




10




Voskhod 2 reentry engines failed to fire when it was to end the flight and bring the spacecraft down, but the cosmonauts managed to fix them and perform the reentry an orbit later (and a couple thousand kilometers from the planned landing site, right into frozen taiga.)
– SF.
Dec 4 at 17:04




Voskhod 2 reentry engines failed to fire when it was to end the flight and bring the spacecraft down, but the cosmonauts managed to fix them and perform the reentry an orbit later (and a couple thousand kilometers from the planned landing site, right into frozen taiga.)
– SF.
Dec 4 at 17:04












There are conspiracy theories concerning lost cosmonauts (see particularly the Judica-Cordiglia brothers), but these have been pretty thoroughly debunked.
– Michael Seifert
Dec 4 at 18:29




There are conspiracy theories concerning lost cosmonauts (see particularly the Judica-Cordiglia brothers), but these have been pretty thoroughly debunked.
– Michael Seifert
Dec 4 at 18:29












Thanks for the edit!
– uhoh
Dec 4 at 19:10




Thanks for the edit!
– uhoh
Dec 4 at 19:10












How about the Salyut that lost power and a crew docked to revive it? I forget which one specically.
– geoffc
Dec 4 at 20:04




How about the Salyut that lost power and a crew docked to revive it? I forget which one specically.
– geoffc
Dec 4 at 20:04










5 Answers
5






active

oldest

votes

















up vote
46
down vote



accepted










Seeing as the answer is "no" (As per @DarkDust), I thought I'd add a situation that's similar.



There was a short period aboard Mir after the collision with progress where all astronauts were without power, life support, lights and communication. The cosmonauts were interviewed about it and said something along the lines of "after being in here for so long around the whirring and beeping... something about the absolute silence was terrifying."



The video can be found here (the quote is at the end 8:00 in):




For the first time I experienced a totally silent, still Space Station.
Where there are no fans moving, there is no lights on-- nothing is alive... just our breathing is causing any sound.









Another quote on just how surreal this accident was:




When we heard the words 'decompression on station' I felt a sense of detachment, as if it wasn't me. As if it were some other person. Then I shuddered, like waking from a terrible dream, because something like this is not supposed to happen.




However, there were no fatalities due to this collision as they sealed off the damaged module in time and got things working again. It's a very interesting topic to read about though simply because it was one of the worst docking errors in space history. Being one of the few in space to experience darkness and silence like this would be akin to feeling lost in space.






share|improve this answer






























    up vote
    31
    down vote













    No, there have not. So far all astronauts have made it back to earth, though not all of them alive. The only casualties in space (above the Kármán line) are the crew of Soyuz 11 who were still in orbit when they died but about to reenter the atmosphere. All other casualties like Komarov in Soyuz 1 or the Columbia Space Shuttle disaster were during reentry well below the Kármán line.






    share|improve this answer






























      up vote
      22
      down vote













      Not humans, but Laika died due to malfunctioning enviromental control, and a retrorocket failure on Biosatellite 1 left its passengers (plants, bugs, and frog eggs) drifting in a slowly decaying orbit until burning up on re-entry.






      share|improve this answer

















      • 5




        Dogs are people too. +1
        – Mazura
        Dec 5 at 1:28






      • 7




        There was no provision for her to come back alive anyway...
        – Antzi
        Dec 5 at 5:10






      • 8




        According to a children's book my daughter has, Laika actually was rescued by aliens and taken to a new family and you will not tell me any different :p
        – Whelkaholism
        Dec 6 at 9:34


















      up vote
      17
      down vote













      Another similar incident was the Soyuz 23, where the capsule landed on a partially frozen lake in the middle of a blizzard, which it broke through, and ended up partially submerged, specifically the hatch. It took quite some time to rescue the astronauts, and in fact they were presumed dead when the capsule was recovered. An hour or two after the capsule was recovered, the astronauts opened the door from the inside.






      share|improve this answer

















      • 3




        Any reason why the rescuers didn't open the hatch themselves? Even if they were presumed dead, surely you should check at the earliest opportunity in case they are not?
        – Baldrickk
        Dec 5 at 11:53










      • They were presumed dead, and wanted to wait for a special crew to deal with the dead bodies, at least according to Wikipedia...
        – PearsonArtPhoto
        Dec 5 at 13:30










      • Also why did it take 2 hours for them to open it? Passed out due to lack of oxygen or hypothermia or...?
        – Magic Octopus Urn
        Dec 6 at 4:32












      • The astronauts opened it, not the rescue crew. At the time there was frost on the spacecraft, so I assume they thought hypothermia.
        – PearsonArtPhoto
        Dec 6 at 13:06






      • 4




        Imagine being those rescuers? "Nah, they're dead... leave them for the recovery crew." hatch opens "UUUH HEY JANE WE WERE JUST ABOUT TO GET YOU OUT, JUST GETTING PREPARED, YEP!"
        – Adonalsium
        Dec 6 at 15:26


















      up vote
      1
      down vote













      No it hasn't happened yet. It is quite plausible it could have though.



      One close call is Soyuz-TM5 http://www.russianspaceweb.com/mir_close_calls.html



      Practice at that time was to jettison the orbital module before starting the re-entry sequence. This saved delta-V but left the crew with no ability to return to the space station.



      According to the article linked their first attempt at a re-entry burn failed due to an issue with the guidance system. Their second attempt not only failed but triggered a sequence which would have jettisoned the service module, fortunately they were able to abort that sequence, debug the issue and land a day later.



      I don't know exactly how long they could have lasted without the orbital module but from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Soyuz_diagrama.gif it seems a fair bit of life support stuff is located there. If they had ended up stuck without usable propulsion I doubt any type of rescue would have been possible.






      share|improve this answer





















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        5 Answers
        5






        active

        oldest

        votes








        5 Answers
        5






        active

        oldest

        votes









        active

        oldest

        votes






        active

        oldest

        votes








        up vote
        46
        down vote



        accepted










        Seeing as the answer is "no" (As per @DarkDust), I thought I'd add a situation that's similar.



        There was a short period aboard Mir after the collision with progress where all astronauts were without power, life support, lights and communication. The cosmonauts were interviewed about it and said something along the lines of "after being in here for so long around the whirring and beeping... something about the absolute silence was terrifying."



        The video can be found here (the quote is at the end 8:00 in):




        For the first time I experienced a totally silent, still Space Station.
        Where there are no fans moving, there is no lights on-- nothing is alive... just our breathing is causing any sound.









        Another quote on just how surreal this accident was:




        When we heard the words 'decompression on station' I felt a sense of detachment, as if it wasn't me. As if it were some other person. Then I shuddered, like waking from a terrible dream, because something like this is not supposed to happen.




        However, there were no fatalities due to this collision as they sealed off the damaged module in time and got things working again. It's a very interesting topic to read about though simply because it was one of the worst docking errors in space history. Being one of the few in space to experience darkness and silence like this would be akin to feeling lost in space.






        share|improve this answer



























          up vote
          46
          down vote



          accepted










          Seeing as the answer is "no" (As per @DarkDust), I thought I'd add a situation that's similar.



          There was a short period aboard Mir after the collision with progress where all astronauts were without power, life support, lights and communication. The cosmonauts were interviewed about it and said something along the lines of "after being in here for so long around the whirring and beeping... something about the absolute silence was terrifying."



          The video can be found here (the quote is at the end 8:00 in):




          For the first time I experienced a totally silent, still Space Station.
          Where there are no fans moving, there is no lights on-- nothing is alive... just our breathing is causing any sound.









          Another quote on just how surreal this accident was:




          When we heard the words 'decompression on station' I felt a sense of detachment, as if it wasn't me. As if it were some other person. Then I shuddered, like waking from a terrible dream, because something like this is not supposed to happen.




          However, there were no fatalities due to this collision as they sealed off the damaged module in time and got things working again. It's a very interesting topic to read about though simply because it was one of the worst docking errors in space history. Being one of the few in space to experience darkness and silence like this would be akin to feeling lost in space.






          share|improve this answer

























            up vote
            46
            down vote



            accepted







            up vote
            46
            down vote



            accepted






            Seeing as the answer is "no" (As per @DarkDust), I thought I'd add a situation that's similar.



            There was a short period aboard Mir after the collision with progress where all astronauts were without power, life support, lights and communication. The cosmonauts were interviewed about it and said something along the lines of "after being in here for so long around the whirring and beeping... something about the absolute silence was terrifying."



            The video can be found here (the quote is at the end 8:00 in):




            For the first time I experienced a totally silent, still Space Station.
            Where there are no fans moving, there is no lights on-- nothing is alive... just our breathing is causing any sound.









            Another quote on just how surreal this accident was:




            When we heard the words 'decompression on station' I felt a sense of detachment, as if it wasn't me. As if it were some other person. Then I shuddered, like waking from a terrible dream, because something like this is not supposed to happen.




            However, there were no fatalities due to this collision as they sealed off the damaged module in time and got things working again. It's a very interesting topic to read about though simply because it was one of the worst docking errors in space history. Being one of the few in space to experience darkness and silence like this would be akin to feeling lost in space.






            share|improve this answer














            Seeing as the answer is "no" (As per @DarkDust), I thought I'd add a situation that's similar.



            There was a short period aboard Mir after the collision with progress where all astronauts were without power, life support, lights and communication. The cosmonauts were interviewed about it and said something along the lines of "after being in here for so long around the whirring and beeping... something about the absolute silence was terrifying."



            The video can be found here (the quote is at the end 8:00 in):




            For the first time I experienced a totally silent, still Space Station.
            Where there are no fans moving, there is no lights on-- nothing is alive... just our breathing is causing any sound.









            Another quote on just how surreal this accident was:




            When we heard the words 'decompression on station' I felt a sense of detachment, as if it wasn't me. As if it were some other person. Then I shuddered, like waking from a terrible dream, because something like this is not supposed to happen.




            However, there were no fatalities due to this collision as they sealed off the damaged module in time and got things working again. It's a very interesting topic to read about though simply because it was one of the worst docking errors in space history. Being one of the few in space to experience darkness and silence like this would be akin to feeling lost in space.















            share|improve this answer














            share|improve this answer



            share|improve this answer








            edited Dec 5 at 0:53









            Nathan Tuggy

            3,58142536




            3,58142536










            answered Dec 4 at 15:18









            Magic Octopus Urn

            2,34211139




            2,34211139






















                up vote
                31
                down vote













                No, there have not. So far all astronauts have made it back to earth, though not all of them alive. The only casualties in space (above the Kármán line) are the crew of Soyuz 11 who were still in orbit when they died but about to reenter the atmosphere. All other casualties like Komarov in Soyuz 1 or the Columbia Space Shuttle disaster were during reentry well below the Kármán line.






                share|improve this answer



























                  up vote
                  31
                  down vote













                  No, there have not. So far all astronauts have made it back to earth, though not all of them alive. The only casualties in space (above the Kármán line) are the crew of Soyuz 11 who were still in orbit when they died but about to reenter the atmosphere. All other casualties like Komarov in Soyuz 1 or the Columbia Space Shuttle disaster were during reentry well below the Kármán line.






                  share|improve this answer

























                    up vote
                    31
                    down vote










                    up vote
                    31
                    down vote









                    No, there have not. So far all astronauts have made it back to earth, though not all of them alive. The only casualties in space (above the Kármán line) are the crew of Soyuz 11 who were still in orbit when they died but about to reenter the atmosphere. All other casualties like Komarov in Soyuz 1 or the Columbia Space Shuttle disaster were during reentry well below the Kármán line.






                    share|improve this answer














                    No, there have not. So far all astronauts have made it back to earth, though not all of them alive. The only casualties in space (above the Kármán line) are the crew of Soyuz 11 who were still in orbit when they died but about to reenter the atmosphere. All other casualties like Komarov in Soyuz 1 or the Columbia Space Shuttle disaster were during reentry well below the Kármán line.







                    share|improve this answer














                    share|improve this answer



                    share|improve this answer








                    edited Dec 4 at 12:01

























                    answered Dec 4 at 11:55









                    DarkDust

                    5,84522448




                    5,84522448






















                        up vote
                        22
                        down vote













                        Not humans, but Laika died due to malfunctioning enviromental control, and a retrorocket failure on Biosatellite 1 left its passengers (plants, bugs, and frog eggs) drifting in a slowly decaying orbit until burning up on re-entry.






                        share|improve this answer

















                        • 5




                          Dogs are people too. +1
                          – Mazura
                          Dec 5 at 1:28






                        • 7




                          There was no provision for her to come back alive anyway...
                          – Antzi
                          Dec 5 at 5:10






                        • 8




                          According to a children's book my daughter has, Laika actually was rescued by aliens and taken to a new family and you will not tell me any different :p
                          – Whelkaholism
                          Dec 6 at 9:34















                        up vote
                        22
                        down vote













                        Not humans, but Laika died due to malfunctioning enviromental control, and a retrorocket failure on Biosatellite 1 left its passengers (plants, bugs, and frog eggs) drifting in a slowly decaying orbit until burning up on re-entry.






                        share|improve this answer

















                        • 5




                          Dogs are people too. +1
                          – Mazura
                          Dec 5 at 1:28






                        • 7




                          There was no provision for her to come back alive anyway...
                          – Antzi
                          Dec 5 at 5:10






                        • 8




                          According to a children's book my daughter has, Laika actually was rescued by aliens and taken to a new family and you will not tell me any different :p
                          – Whelkaholism
                          Dec 6 at 9:34













                        up vote
                        22
                        down vote










                        up vote
                        22
                        down vote









                        Not humans, but Laika died due to malfunctioning enviromental control, and a retrorocket failure on Biosatellite 1 left its passengers (plants, bugs, and frog eggs) drifting in a slowly decaying orbit until burning up on re-entry.






                        share|improve this answer












                        Not humans, but Laika died due to malfunctioning enviromental control, and a retrorocket failure on Biosatellite 1 left its passengers (plants, bugs, and frog eggs) drifting in a slowly decaying orbit until burning up on re-entry.







                        share|improve this answer












                        share|improve this answer



                        share|improve this answer










                        answered Dec 4 at 20:38









                        AShelly

                        32114




                        32114








                        • 5




                          Dogs are people too. +1
                          – Mazura
                          Dec 5 at 1:28






                        • 7




                          There was no provision for her to come back alive anyway...
                          – Antzi
                          Dec 5 at 5:10






                        • 8




                          According to a children's book my daughter has, Laika actually was rescued by aliens and taken to a new family and you will not tell me any different :p
                          – Whelkaholism
                          Dec 6 at 9:34














                        • 5




                          Dogs are people too. +1
                          – Mazura
                          Dec 5 at 1:28






                        • 7




                          There was no provision for her to come back alive anyway...
                          – Antzi
                          Dec 5 at 5:10






                        • 8




                          According to a children's book my daughter has, Laika actually was rescued by aliens and taken to a new family and you will not tell me any different :p
                          – Whelkaholism
                          Dec 6 at 9:34








                        5




                        5




                        Dogs are people too. +1
                        – Mazura
                        Dec 5 at 1:28




                        Dogs are people too. +1
                        – Mazura
                        Dec 5 at 1:28




                        7




                        7




                        There was no provision for her to come back alive anyway...
                        – Antzi
                        Dec 5 at 5:10




                        There was no provision for her to come back alive anyway...
                        – Antzi
                        Dec 5 at 5:10




                        8




                        8




                        According to a children's book my daughter has, Laika actually was rescued by aliens and taken to a new family and you will not tell me any different :p
                        – Whelkaholism
                        Dec 6 at 9:34




                        According to a children's book my daughter has, Laika actually was rescued by aliens and taken to a new family and you will not tell me any different :p
                        – Whelkaholism
                        Dec 6 at 9:34










                        up vote
                        17
                        down vote













                        Another similar incident was the Soyuz 23, where the capsule landed on a partially frozen lake in the middle of a blizzard, which it broke through, and ended up partially submerged, specifically the hatch. It took quite some time to rescue the astronauts, and in fact they were presumed dead when the capsule was recovered. An hour or two after the capsule was recovered, the astronauts opened the door from the inside.






                        share|improve this answer

















                        • 3




                          Any reason why the rescuers didn't open the hatch themselves? Even if they were presumed dead, surely you should check at the earliest opportunity in case they are not?
                          – Baldrickk
                          Dec 5 at 11:53










                        • They were presumed dead, and wanted to wait for a special crew to deal with the dead bodies, at least according to Wikipedia...
                          – PearsonArtPhoto
                          Dec 5 at 13:30










                        • Also why did it take 2 hours for them to open it? Passed out due to lack of oxygen or hypothermia or...?
                          – Magic Octopus Urn
                          Dec 6 at 4:32












                        • The astronauts opened it, not the rescue crew. At the time there was frost on the spacecraft, so I assume they thought hypothermia.
                          – PearsonArtPhoto
                          Dec 6 at 13:06






                        • 4




                          Imagine being those rescuers? "Nah, they're dead... leave them for the recovery crew." hatch opens "UUUH HEY JANE WE WERE JUST ABOUT TO GET YOU OUT, JUST GETTING PREPARED, YEP!"
                          – Adonalsium
                          Dec 6 at 15:26















                        up vote
                        17
                        down vote













                        Another similar incident was the Soyuz 23, where the capsule landed on a partially frozen lake in the middle of a blizzard, which it broke through, and ended up partially submerged, specifically the hatch. It took quite some time to rescue the astronauts, and in fact they were presumed dead when the capsule was recovered. An hour or two after the capsule was recovered, the astronauts opened the door from the inside.






                        share|improve this answer

















                        • 3




                          Any reason why the rescuers didn't open the hatch themselves? Even if they were presumed dead, surely you should check at the earliest opportunity in case they are not?
                          – Baldrickk
                          Dec 5 at 11:53










                        • They were presumed dead, and wanted to wait for a special crew to deal with the dead bodies, at least according to Wikipedia...
                          – PearsonArtPhoto
                          Dec 5 at 13:30










                        • Also why did it take 2 hours for them to open it? Passed out due to lack of oxygen or hypothermia or...?
                          – Magic Octopus Urn
                          Dec 6 at 4:32












                        • The astronauts opened it, not the rescue crew. At the time there was frost on the spacecraft, so I assume they thought hypothermia.
                          – PearsonArtPhoto
                          Dec 6 at 13:06






                        • 4




                          Imagine being those rescuers? "Nah, they're dead... leave them for the recovery crew." hatch opens "UUUH HEY JANE WE WERE JUST ABOUT TO GET YOU OUT, JUST GETTING PREPARED, YEP!"
                          – Adonalsium
                          Dec 6 at 15:26













                        up vote
                        17
                        down vote










                        up vote
                        17
                        down vote









                        Another similar incident was the Soyuz 23, where the capsule landed on a partially frozen lake in the middle of a blizzard, which it broke through, and ended up partially submerged, specifically the hatch. It took quite some time to rescue the astronauts, and in fact they were presumed dead when the capsule was recovered. An hour or two after the capsule was recovered, the astronauts opened the door from the inside.






                        share|improve this answer












                        Another similar incident was the Soyuz 23, where the capsule landed on a partially frozen lake in the middle of a blizzard, which it broke through, and ended up partially submerged, specifically the hatch. It took quite some time to rescue the astronauts, and in fact they were presumed dead when the capsule was recovered. An hour or two after the capsule was recovered, the astronauts opened the door from the inside.







                        share|improve this answer












                        share|improve this answer



                        share|improve this answer










                        answered Dec 4 at 18:15









                        PearsonArtPhoto

                        79.3k16226436




                        79.3k16226436








                        • 3




                          Any reason why the rescuers didn't open the hatch themselves? Even if they were presumed dead, surely you should check at the earliest opportunity in case they are not?
                          – Baldrickk
                          Dec 5 at 11:53










                        • They were presumed dead, and wanted to wait for a special crew to deal with the dead bodies, at least according to Wikipedia...
                          – PearsonArtPhoto
                          Dec 5 at 13:30










                        • Also why did it take 2 hours for them to open it? Passed out due to lack of oxygen or hypothermia or...?
                          – Magic Octopus Urn
                          Dec 6 at 4:32












                        • The astronauts opened it, not the rescue crew. At the time there was frost on the spacecraft, so I assume they thought hypothermia.
                          – PearsonArtPhoto
                          Dec 6 at 13:06






                        • 4




                          Imagine being those rescuers? "Nah, they're dead... leave them for the recovery crew." hatch opens "UUUH HEY JANE WE WERE JUST ABOUT TO GET YOU OUT, JUST GETTING PREPARED, YEP!"
                          – Adonalsium
                          Dec 6 at 15:26














                        • 3




                          Any reason why the rescuers didn't open the hatch themselves? Even if they were presumed dead, surely you should check at the earliest opportunity in case they are not?
                          – Baldrickk
                          Dec 5 at 11:53










                        • They were presumed dead, and wanted to wait for a special crew to deal with the dead bodies, at least according to Wikipedia...
                          – PearsonArtPhoto
                          Dec 5 at 13:30










                        • Also why did it take 2 hours for them to open it? Passed out due to lack of oxygen or hypothermia or...?
                          – Magic Octopus Urn
                          Dec 6 at 4:32












                        • The astronauts opened it, not the rescue crew. At the time there was frost on the spacecraft, so I assume they thought hypothermia.
                          – PearsonArtPhoto
                          Dec 6 at 13:06






                        • 4




                          Imagine being those rescuers? "Nah, they're dead... leave them for the recovery crew." hatch opens "UUUH HEY JANE WE WERE JUST ABOUT TO GET YOU OUT, JUST GETTING PREPARED, YEP!"
                          – Adonalsium
                          Dec 6 at 15:26








                        3




                        3




                        Any reason why the rescuers didn't open the hatch themselves? Even if they were presumed dead, surely you should check at the earliest opportunity in case they are not?
                        – Baldrickk
                        Dec 5 at 11:53




                        Any reason why the rescuers didn't open the hatch themselves? Even if they were presumed dead, surely you should check at the earliest opportunity in case they are not?
                        – Baldrickk
                        Dec 5 at 11:53












                        They were presumed dead, and wanted to wait for a special crew to deal with the dead bodies, at least according to Wikipedia...
                        – PearsonArtPhoto
                        Dec 5 at 13:30




                        They were presumed dead, and wanted to wait for a special crew to deal with the dead bodies, at least according to Wikipedia...
                        – PearsonArtPhoto
                        Dec 5 at 13:30












                        Also why did it take 2 hours for them to open it? Passed out due to lack of oxygen or hypothermia or...?
                        – Magic Octopus Urn
                        Dec 6 at 4:32






                        Also why did it take 2 hours for them to open it? Passed out due to lack of oxygen or hypothermia or...?
                        – Magic Octopus Urn
                        Dec 6 at 4:32














                        The astronauts opened it, not the rescue crew. At the time there was frost on the spacecraft, so I assume they thought hypothermia.
                        – PearsonArtPhoto
                        Dec 6 at 13:06




                        The astronauts opened it, not the rescue crew. At the time there was frost on the spacecraft, so I assume they thought hypothermia.
                        – PearsonArtPhoto
                        Dec 6 at 13:06




                        4




                        4




                        Imagine being those rescuers? "Nah, they're dead... leave them for the recovery crew." hatch opens "UUUH HEY JANE WE WERE JUST ABOUT TO GET YOU OUT, JUST GETTING PREPARED, YEP!"
                        – Adonalsium
                        Dec 6 at 15:26




                        Imagine being those rescuers? "Nah, they're dead... leave them for the recovery crew." hatch opens "UUUH HEY JANE WE WERE JUST ABOUT TO GET YOU OUT, JUST GETTING PREPARED, YEP!"
                        – Adonalsium
                        Dec 6 at 15:26










                        up vote
                        1
                        down vote













                        No it hasn't happened yet. It is quite plausible it could have though.



                        One close call is Soyuz-TM5 http://www.russianspaceweb.com/mir_close_calls.html



                        Practice at that time was to jettison the orbital module before starting the re-entry sequence. This saved delta-V but left the crew with no ability to return to the space station.



                        According to the article linked their first attempt at a re-entry burn failed due to an issue with the guidance system. Their second attempt not only failed but triggered a sequence which would have jettisoned the service module, fortunately they were able to abort that sequence, debug the issue and land a day later.



                        I don't know exactly how long they could have lasted without the orbital module but from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Soyuz_diagrama.gif it seems a fair bit of life support stuff is located there. If they had ended up stuck without usable propulsion I doubt any type of rescue would have been possible.






                        share|improve this answer

























                          up vote
                          1
                          down vote













                          No it hasn't happened yet. It is quite plausible it could have though.



                          One close call is Soyuz-TM5 http://www.russianspaceweb.com/mir_close_calls.html



                          Practice at that time was to jettison the orbital module before starting the re-entry sequence. This saved delta-V but left the crew with no ability to return to the space station.



                          According to the article linked their first attempt at a re-entry burn failed due to an issue with the guidance system. Their second attempt not only failed but triggered a sequence which would have jettisoned the service module, fortunately they were able to abort that sequence, debug the issue and land a day later.



                          I don't know exactly how long they could have lasted without the orbital module but from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Soyuz_diagrama.gif it seems a fair bit of life support stuff is located there. If they had ended up stuck without usable propulsion I doubt any type of rescue would have been possible.






                          share|improve this answer























                            up vote
                            1
                            down vote










                            up vote
                            1
                            down vote









                            No it hasn't happened yet. It is quite plausible it could have though.



                            One close call is Soyuz-TM5 http://www.russianspaceweb.com/mir_close_calls.html



                            Practice at that time was to jettison the orbital module before starting the re-entry sequence. This saved delta-V but left the crew with no ability to return to the space station.



                            According to the article linked their first attempt at a re-entry burn failed due to an issue with the guidance system. Their second attempt not only failed but triggered a sequence which would have jettisoned the service module, fortunately they were able to abort that sequence, debug the issue and land a day later.



                            I don't know exactly how long they could have lasted without the orbital module but from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Soyuz_diagrama.gif it seems a fair bit of life support stuff is located there. If they had ended up stuck without usable propulsion I doubt any type of rescue would have been possible.






                            share|improve this answer












                            No it hasn't happened yet. It is quite plausible it could have though.



                            One close call is Soyuz-TM5 http://www.russianspaceweb.com/mir_close_calls.html



                            Practice at that time was to jettison the orbital module before starting the re-entry sequence. This saved delta-V but left the crew with no ability to return to the space station.



                            According to the article linked their first attempt at a re-entry burn failed due to an issue with the guidance system. Their second attempt not only failed but triggered a sequence which would have jettisoned the service module, fortunately they were able to abort that sequence, debug the issue and land a day later.



                            I don't know exactly how long they could have lasted without the orbital module but from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Soyuz_diagrama.gif it seems a fair bit of life support stuff is located there. If they had ended up stuck without usable propulsion I doubt any type of rescue would have been possible.







                            share|improve this answer












                            share|improve this answer



                            share|improve this answer










                            answered Dec 6 at 15:37









                            Peter Green

                            63255




                            63255






























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