SPACE — On January 16, 1969, two manned spacecraft docked in orbit for the first time. It was the first docking of a spacecraft in space.
When the Soviet Union launched the Soyuz 4 spacecraft, there was only one cosmonaut on board. However, it returned with a crew of three after two cosmonauts from Soyuz 5 switched spacecraft in orbit.
Soyuz 4 returned safely to Earth, but the only unfortunate cosmonaut left behind on Soyuz 5 experienced something unexpected.
Upon re-entry into Earth’s atmosphere, the Soyuz 5 service module failed to separate from the descent module. The spaceship turned upside down.
Also read: Today’s history: The Soyuz rocket carrying two Russian cosmonauts exploded
The situation became more fatal when the parachute and soft landing rocket failed to deploy properly. The cosmonaut, Boris Volynov, miraculously survived the crash, but he lost several teeth. Source: Space.com
2024-01-16 16:29:00
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