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Saturday, October 20, 2018 – 12:01
The two crew members, Russian cosmonaut Alexei Ovchinin and American Nick Hague, landed unharmed in the desert Kazakh steppe as rescue teams ran to reach them, US agencies Nasa announced. and Roscosmos.
The incident occurred while the first and second phases of a Russian rocket were separated shortly after the launch of the Soviet-era Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
The Soyuz capsule carrying Ovchinin and Hague was separated from the Russian rocket that was malfunctioning and plunged to the surface, with parachutes helping to slow its speed, NASA said. A cloud of sand formed when the capsule landed after what Nasa called a steep ballistic descent of 34 minutes.
A video from inside the capsule showed the two men shaking at the moment of failure, angry arms and legs. We can hear Mr. Ovchinin say, "It was a quick flight."
Photographs published by Roscosmos after the rescue showed the two men smiling and relaxing on sofas in a town near their landing place, while they were undergoing medical tests. A photograph posted on Twitter by NASA showed Mr. Ovchinin and Mr. Hague kissing their families after being transported to the Baikonur site.
Rescue teams rushed to the scene to pick them up from their landing sites, including paratroopers, helicopters and all-terrain vehicles, Nasa said.
NASA has been using Russian rockets to transport astronauts to the space station since the US abandoned its space shuttle program in 2011, although the agency has announced plans for a stolen space flight. test carrying two astronauts in a SpaceX commercial rocket next April.
The space is a space of cooperation between the United States and Russia at a time of strained relations. When asked about this incident, President Donald Trump told the press at the White House that he was "not worried" that US astronauts must rely on Russia to enter the United States. ;space.
Thursday's incident was the first serious launching problem encountered by a Soyuz space mission since 1983, when a crew had narrowly escaped before the explosion of a launch pad.
Moscow immediately suspended all manned space launches, reported the RIA news agency, while Roscosmos chief Dmitry Rogozin had ordered the creation of a state commission charged with the destruction of space. investigate what was wrong. The Russian investigation committee said that he had opened a criminal investigation into this case.
"The rescue services have been operating since the first second of the accident," Rogozin wrote on Twitter. "The emergency rescue systems of the MS-Soyuz Space Shuttle ran smoothly, the crew was saved."
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that the most important thing was that both men were alive.
The next space station replenishment mission was scheduled to take place in Baikonur by the end of October, but the new investigation may delay it.
NASA officials must now decide whether or not to maintain the US presence in the $ 100 billion orbital research laboratory.
"The fact that this crew did not come into orbit makes us feel bad for him, but we are certain that our Russian colleagues will know what is happening and we hope to see Nick and Alexei in orbit at the space station soon," said Kenny Todd, head of integration of operations of the International Space Station at NASA.
Messrs. Hague and Ovchinin were to join the current crew of the channel, consisting of the American Serena Aunon-Chancellor.
"We have planned a lot for the rest of the fall and winter, and all of this is being reevaluated right now," Sam Scimemi, director of the company, told Reuters. Nasa for the International Space Station. "We have resources for this crew for next year, so we have no worries about the resources available on board."
According to a source quoted by Interfax, the accident would have resulted in the three people aboard the space station – a German and a Russian, in addition to the American – would be stuck at least until the end of the day. in January. They had to return to Earth in December.
Unarmed Soyuz rocket launches could also be suspended, Interfax said.
Visiting Kazakhstan for the first time as a NASA administrator, Jim Bridenstine attended the launch on Thursday and promised a "thorough investigation" about the accident.
"I am grateful that everyone is safe," said Bridenstine in a statement.
Questions are now likely to be asked about Russia's space program. In August, a Soyuz capsule moored to the ISS revealed a hole that caused a brief loss of atmospheric pressure and needed repair. Mr. Rogozin stated that it could have been deliberately fabricated by someone during manufacture or when the boat was in space.
Last November, Roscosmos lost contact with a newly launched meteorological satellite after taking off from Russia's new Vostochny cosmodrome in the Far East.
REUTERS
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