Discuss my latest article here
A great and fascinating article @AndyCDiscuss my latest article here
I didn't have space to go into just how bad a day Alexei Leonov had on Voskhod 2.
After somehow managing to squeeze back in, you'd have thought the rest would be easy.
However... the automatic re-entry system failed and they overshot their window. But with manual corrections, they should be okay.
Then, the service module on the Voskhod failed to separate, with a cable staying connected. So the two components, attached through re-entry, started to gyrate and spin wildly as they burned through the atmosphere.
Fortunately the cable burned through before catastrophic damage could be done to the part the cosmonauts were in - but it did mean they were way off target.
They landed a couple of thousand kilometers beyond their target point, in deep Siberia. In March.
In trackless forest, with several feet of snow, the rescue crew couldn't initially find them. When they did, they couldn't land.
The hatch was jammed, but they finally got it open - although it no longer would close properly. In bitter cold, with temperatures dropping and unable to close the hatch, they built a fire.
Which was great, but it attracted wolves...
Yeah, a pretty tough day at the office all round.