ISS Astronauts Safe After Emergency Landing As Soyuz Rocket’s Boosters Malfunctioned After Launch
Today, a Soyuz rocket failed to launch correctly as one of its boosters malfunctioned. The Soyuz spacecraft was carrying two ISS astronauts, namely, the NASA’s Nick Hague and the Roscosmos’s Alexei Ovchinin. Luckily, the two astronauts performed a successful emergency landing and returned safely to the ground.
The Soyuz rocket launched as scheduled, at 4:40 AM (EDT), from the Roscosmos’s cosmodrome at Baikonur, Kazakhstan. However, immediately after launch, one of the Soyuz’s boosters malfunctioned and the two astronauts aboard, who were heading towards ISS, commenced the emergency landing procedures.
Minutes later, the Soyuz module carrying the two astronauts entered ballistical decent and hit the ground 13 miles east of the town of Dzhezkazgan in the steppes of Kazakhstan. According to NASA, the rescue teams reached the location fast and, fortunately, the astronauts were out of any danger.
Also, NASA’s administrator, Jim Bridenstine added that a “thorough investigation into the cause of the incident would be conducted.”
As a Soyuz rocket’s booster malfunctioned after launch, the two ISS astronauts aboard safely returned after an emergency landing
“Thank God, the crew is alive,” also said Vladimir Putin’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov. He also added that the Russian President was continuously updated with the course of the events and he’s still receiving updates regarding the preliminary investigations.
That would have been the first mission for NASA’s Nick Hague who joined the US space agency in 2013. On the other hand, the Russian Alexei Ovchinin has more experience as he already spent six months in outer space.
The Soyuz rocket was supposed to fulfill a six-hour journey toward ISS. However, just minutes after launch one of its boosters malfunctioned, which forced the two ISS astronauts aboard to start the emergency landing procedures. They successfully achieved that and are now in good condition, as reported by NASA.
This recent Soyuz rocket failure is the most significant one since the explosion of another Soyuz rocket back in 1983. That time, like now, no human casualties have been recorded.
Vadim is a passionate writer on various topics but especially on stuff related to health, technology, and science. Therefore, for Great Lakes Ledger, Vadim will cover health and Sci&Tech news.
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