Soyuz 11 () was the only crewed mission to board the world's first
space station
A space station (or orbital station) is a spacecraft which remains orbital spaceflight, in orbit and human spaceflight, hosts humans for extended periods of time. It therefore is an artificial satellite featuring space habitat (facility), habitat ...
,
Salyut 1
Salyut 1 (), also known as DOS-1 (Durable Orbital Station 1), was the world's first space station. It was launched into low Earth orbit by the Soviet Union on April 19, 1971. The Salyut programme, ''Salyut'' program subsequently achieved five m ...
. The crew,
Georgy Dobrovolsky,
Vladislav Volkov, and
Viktor Patsayev,
arrived at the space station on 7 June 1971, and departed on 29 June 1971. The mission ended in disaster when the
crew capsule depressurised during preparations for
re-entry
Atmospheric entry (sometimes listed as Vimpact or Ventry) is the movement of an object from outer space into and through the gases of an atmosphere of a planet, dwarf planet, or natural satellite. Atmospheric entry may be ''uncontrolled entry ...
, killing the three-person crew.
The three crew members of Soyuz 11 are the only
humans to have died in space.
Crew
Backup crew
Original crew
Crew notes
The original prime crew for Soyuz 11 consisted of
Alexei Leonov,
Valery Kubasov, and
Pyotr Kolodin. A medical
X-ray
An X-ray (also known in many languages as Röntgen radiation) is a form of high-energy electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength shorter than those of ultraviolet rays and longer than those of gamma rays. Roughly, X-rays have a wavelength ran ...
examination four days before launch suggested that Kubasov might have
tuberculosis
Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...
, and according to the mission rules, the prime crew was replaced with the backup crew. For Dobrovolsky and Patsayev, this was to be their first space mission. After the failure of
Salyut 2 to orbit, Kubasov and Leonov were reassigned to
Soyuz 19 for the
Apollo-Soyuz Test Project in 1975.
Mission
Parameters
* Mass:
* Perigee:
[ ]
* Apogee:
* Inclination: 51.6°
* Period: 88.3 minutes
Flight
The
Soyuz 7K-OKS spacecraft was launched on 6 June 1971, from the
Baikonur Cosmodrome
The Baikonur Cosmodrome is a spaceport operated by Russia within Kazakhstan. Located in the Kazakh city of Baikonur, it is the largest operational space launch facility in terms of area. All Russian Human spaceflight, crewed spaceflights are l ...
in the central
Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic
The Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic, also known as Soviet Kazakhstan, the Kazakh SSR, KSSR, or simply Kazakhstan, was one of the transcontinental country, transcontinental Republics of the Soviet Union, constituent republics of the Soviet Un ...
, and used the callsign ''Yantar'' (
Amber
Amber is fossilized tree resin. Examples of it have been appreciated for its color and natural beauty since the Neolithic times, and worked as a gemstone since antiquity."Amber" (2004). In Maxine N. Lurie and Marc Mappen (eds.) ''Encyclopedia ...
). Several months earlier, the first mission to the Salyut,
Soyuz 10, had failed to successfully dock with the station.
During the first day of the flight, maneuvers were made to effect a
rendezvous with the uncrewed Salyut (1971-032A). When Soyuz 11 was from Salyut, automatic devices took over, and in 24 minutes closed the gap between the two ships to and reduced the relative speed difference to . Control of the ships went from automatic back to manual at . Docking took 3 hours 19 minutes to complete and involved making the connection mechanically rigid, engaging various electrical and hydraulic links, and establishing air-tight seals before locks could be opened. When the pressure was equalized between the ships, the locks were opened and all three members of the crew passed into Salyut 1.
[ ] Soyuz 11 successfully docked with Salyut 1 on 7 June 1971 and the cosmonauts remained on board for 22 days, setting space endurance records that would hold until the American
Skylab 2 mission in May and June 1973.
Upon first entering the station, the crew encountered a smoky and burnt atmosphere, and after replacing part of the ventilation system, spent the next day back in their Soyuz until the air cleared. Their stay in Salyut was productive, including live television broadcasts. A fire broke out on day 11 of their stay, causing mission planners to consider abandoning the station. The planned highlight of the mission was to have been the observation of an
N1 rocket launch, but the launch was postponed.
The crew also found that using the exercise treadmill, as they were required to twice a day, caused the whole station to vibrate.
''
Pravda
''Pravda'' ( rus, Правда, p=ˈpravdə, a=Ru-правда.ogg, 'Truth') is a Russian broadsheet newspaper, and was the official newspaper of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, when it was one of the most in ...
'' released news of the mission and regular updates while it was in progress.
Re-entry and death
On 29 June 1971, the three cosmonauts loaded scientific specimens, films, tapes, and other gear into Soyuz 11, then transferred manual control back from Salyut 1 to Soyuz 11 and returned to their ferry craft, with undocking occurring at 18:28 GMT. Soyuz 11 flew co-orbit for a while before it retro-fired at 22:35 GMT in preparation for re-entry. Before re-entering Earth's atmosphere, both the work compartment and the service module were jettisoned. This occurred at about 22:47 GMT. Radio communications abruptly ended when the work compartment separated, well before the normal ionospheric blackout.
Almost 25 minutes later, Soyuz 11's automatic systems landed the craft at 23:16:52 GMT, southwest of
Karazhal in
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a landlocked country primarily in Central Asia, with a European Kazakhstan, small portion in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the Kazakhstan–Russia border, north and west, China to th ...
, after an abnormally silent
return to Earth. The total flight duration of the crew had been 570.22 hours and involved 383 orbits—18 prior to docking, 362 docked, and three after undocking. When the recovery team opened the capsule of the Soyuz 11, they found all three men dead.
[ ]
Kerim Kerimov
Lieutenant General Kerim Abbasali oghlu Kerimov (, ; November 14, 1917March 29, 2003) was a Soviet and Russian engineer of Azerbaijani ethnicity and a general in Soviet Army, who is regarded as one of the key scientists and founders in the Sovi ...
, chair of the State Commission, recalled: "Outwardly, there was no damage whatsoever. They knocked on the side, but there was no response from within. On opening the hatch, they found all three men in their couches, motionless, with dark-blue patches on their faces and trails of blood from their noses and ears. They removed them from the descent module. Dobrovolsky was still warm. The doctors gave artificial respiration. Based on their reports, the cause of death was suffocation".
Cause of death
It quickly became apparent that the cosmonauts had
asphyxia
Asphyxia or asphyxiation is a condition of deficient supply of oxygen to the body which arises from abnormal breathing. Asphyxia causes generalized hypoxia, which affects all the tissues and organs, some more rapidly than others. There are m ...
ted. The fault was traced to a breathing ventilation valve, located between the orbital module and the
descent module, that had been jolted open as the descent module separated from the
service module
A service module (also known as an equipment module or instrument compartment) is a component of a crewed space capsule containing a variety of support systems used for spacecraft operations. Usually located in the uninhabited area of the spacec ...
, 12 minutes and 3 seconds after retrofire.
[ ][ ] The two modules were held together by
explosive bolts designed to fire sequentially; in fact, they had fired simultaneously.
The explosive force of the simultaneous bolt firing caused the internal mechanism of the pressure equalisation valve to loosen a seal that was usually discarded later and which normally allowed for automatic adjustment of the cabin pressure.
The valve opened at an altitude of , and the resultant loss of pressure was
fatal in less than a minute.
The valve was located beneath the seats and was impossible to find and block before the air was lost. Flight recorder data from the single cosmonaut outfitted with biomedical sensors showed cardiac arrest occurred within 40 seconds of pressure loss. By 15 minutes 35 seconds after retrofire, the cabin pressure was zero, and remained there until the capsule entered the
Earth's atmosphere
The atmosphere of Earth is composed of a layer of gas mixture that surrounds the Earth's planetary surface (both lands and oceans), known collectively as air, with variable quantities of suspended aerosols and particulates (which create weathe ...
.
Patsayev's body was found positioned near the valve, and he may have been attempting to close or block the valve at the time he lost consciousness. An extensive investigation was conducted to study all components and systems of Soyuz 11 that could have caused the accident, although doctors quickly concluded that the cosmonauts had died of asphyxiation.
The autopsies at
Burdenko Main Military Clinical Hospital found that the cause of death for the cosmonauts was
haemorrhaging of the blood vessels in their brains, with lesser amounts of bleeding under their skin, in their inner ears, and in their nasal cavities, all of which occurred as exposure to a vacuum environment caused the oxygen and nitrogen in their bloodstreams to bubble and rupture vessels. Their blood was also found to contain heavy concentrations of
lactic acid
Lactic acid is an organic acid. It has the molecular formula C3H6O3. It is white in the solid state and it is miscible with water. When in the dissolved state, it forms a colorless solution. Production includes both artificial synthesis as wel ...
; lactic acid buildup (in tissues and blood) is a sign of inadequate mitochondrial oxygenation, which may be due to
hypoxemia (low blood oxygen), poor blood flow (e.g., decompression) or a combination of both. Although they could have remained conscious for almost 40 seconds after decompression began, less than 20 seconds would have passed before the effects of oxygen starvation made it impossible for them to function.
Aftermath
Alexei Leonov, who would have originally commanded Soyuz 11, had advised the cosmonauts before the flight that they should manually close the valves between the orbital and descent modules, as he did not trust them to shut automatically, a procedure he thought up during extensive time in the Soyuz simulator. However, it appears that the crew did not do this. After the flight, Leonov went back and tried closing one of the valves himself, and found that it took nearly a minute to do so, too long in an emergency situation with the spacecraft's atmosphere escaping fast.
The Soviet state media attempted to downplay the tragic end of the mission, and instead emphasized its accomplishments during the crew's stay aboard Salyut 1. Since they did not publicly announce the exact cause of the cosmonauts' deaths for almost two years afterwards, United States space planners were extremely worried about the upcoming
Skylab program, as they could not be certain whether prolonged time in a
micro-g environment had turned out to be fatal. However, NASA doctor
Charles Berry maintained a firm conviction that the cosmonauts could not have died from spending too many weeks in weightlessness. Until the Soviets finally disclosed what had really happened, Berry theorized that the crew had died from inhaling toxic substances.
A film that was later declassified showed support crews attempting
cardiopulmonary resuscitation
Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is an emergency procedure used during Cardiac arrest, cardiac or Respiratory arrest, respiratory arrest that involves chest compressions, often combined with artificial ventilation, to preserve brain function ...
(CPR) on the cosmonauts. Until
autopsy
An autopsy (also referred to as post-mortem examination, obduction, necropsy, or autopsia cadaverum) is a surgical procedure that consists of a thorough examination of a corpse by dissection to determine the cause, mode, and manner of deat ...
, they were not known to have died because of a capsule depressurisation. The ground crew had lost audio contact with the crew before re-entry began, and had already begun preparations for contingencies in case the crew had been lost.
The cosmonauts were given a large
state funeral
A state funeral is a public funeral ceremony, observing the strict rules of protocol, held to honour people of national significance. State funerals usually include much pomp and ceremony as well as religious overtones and distinctive elements o ...
and buried in the
Kremlin Wall Necropolis
The Kremlin Wall Necropolis is the former national cemetery of the Soviet Union, located in Red Square in Moscow beside the Moscow Kremlin Wall, Kremlin Wall. Burials there began in November 1917, when 240 pro-Bolsheviks who died during the Mosc ...
at
Red Square
Red Square ( rus, Красная площадь, Krasnaya ploshchad', p=ˈkrasnəjə ˈploɕːɪtʲ) is one of the oldest and largest town square, squares in Moscow, Russia. It is located in Moscow's historic centre, along the eastern walls of ...
,
Moscow
Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...
, near the remains of
Yuri Gagarin
Yuri Alekseyevich Gagarin; Gagarin's first name is sometimes transliterated as ''Yuriy'', ''Youri'', or ''Yury''. (9 March 1934 – 27 March 1968) was a Soviet pilot and cosmonaut who, aboard the first successful Human spaceflight, crewed sp ...
.
They were also each posthumously awarded the
Hero of the Soviet Union
The title Hero of the Soviet Union () was the highest distinction in the Soviet Union, awarded together with the Order of Lenin personally or collectively for heroic feats in service to the Soviet state and society. The title was awarded both ...
medal.
The United States sent
Tom Stafford, then NASA's
Chief Astronaut, to represent President
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until Resignation of Richard Nixon, his resignation in 1974. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...
at the funeral, where the Soviets asked him to be one of the
pallbearers. It came at the beginning of a period of more cordial relations between the two nations that would lead to the joint
Apollo–Soyuz
Apollo–Soyuz was the first crewed international Space exploration, space mission, carried out jointly by the United States and the Soviet Union in July 1975. Millions of people around the world watched on television as an American Apollo comm ...
mission.
President Nixon also issued an official statement following the accident:
The
Soyuz
Soyuz is a transliteration of the Cyrillic text Союз (Russian language, Russian and Ukrainian language, Ukrainian, 'Union'). It can refer to any union, such as a trade union (''profsoyuz'') or the Soviet Union, Union of Soviet Socialist Republi ...
spacecraft
A spacecraft is a vehicle that is designed spaceflight, to fly and operate in outer space. Spacecraft are used for a variety of purposes, including Telecommunications, communications, Earth observation satellite, Earth observation, Weather s ...
was extensively redesigned after this incident to carry only two cosmonauts. The extra room meant that the crew could wear
Sokol space suits during launch and landing. The Sokol was a lightweight pressure suit intended for emergency use; updated versions of the suit remain in use.
Memorials
The Soyuz 11 landed south-west of
Karazhal,
Karagandy
Karaganda (, ; ), also known as Karagandy (, ; ; ) (also sometimes romanized as Qaraghandy), is a major city in central Kazakhstan and the capital of the Karaganda Region. It is the fifth most populous city in the country, with a population o ...
,
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a landlocked country primarily in Central Asia, with a European Kazakhstan, small portion in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the Kazakhstan–Russia border, north and west, China to th ...
, and about north-east of
Baikonur
Baikonur ( ; ) is a city in Kazakhstan on the northern bank of the Syr Darya river. It is currently leased and administered by the Russian Federation as an enclave until 2050. It was constructed to serve the Baikonur Cosmodrome with adminis ...
. A memorial monument in the form of a three-sided metallic column, with the engraved image of the face of each crew member set into a stylized triangle on each of the three sides, was placed at the site. The memorial is in open, flat country, far from any populated area, within a small, circular fence.
In 2012, the memorial was found to have been vandalized beyond repair, with only the base of the metallic column remaining and any roads leading to it overgrown.
In 2013, Russian space agency
Roscosmos
The State Corporation for Space Activities "Roscosmos", commonly known simply as Roscosmos (), is a State corporation (Russia), state corporation of the Russian Federation responsible for space science, space flights, List of space agencies, c ...
restored the site with a redesigned monument, reflecting the three-sided form of the original, but this time constructed from brick. Also placed at the site was a sign explaining the history of the location and the fate of the original monument.
Craters on the Moon were
named after the three cosmonauts:
Dobrovolʹskiy,
Volkov, and
Patsaev. The names of the three cosmonauts are included on the ''
Fallen Astronaut
''Fallen Astronaut'' is a aluminum sculpture created by Belgian artist Paul Van Hoeydonck. It is a stylized figure of an astronaut in a spacesuit, intended to commemorate the astronauts and Astronaut#Cosmonaut, cosmonauts who have died in t ...
'' commemorative plaque placed on the Moon during the
Apollo 15
Apollo 15 (July 26August 7, 1971) was the ninth crewed mission in the Apollo program and the fourth Moon landing. It was the first List of Apollo missions#Alphabetical mission types, J mission, with a longer stay on the Moon and a greate ...
mission in August 1971. To honour the loss of the Soyuz 11 crew, a group of hills on
Pluto
Pluto (minor-planet designation: 134340 Pluto) is a dwarf planet in the Kuiper belt, a ring of Trans-Neptunian object, bodies beyond the orbit of Neptune. It is the ninth-largest and tenth-most-massive known object to directly orbit the Su ...
is also named
Soyuz Colles.
In the city of
Penza
Penza (, ) is the largest types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and administrative center of Penza Oblast, Russia. It is located on the Sura (river), Sura River, southeast of Moscow. As of the 2010 Russian census, 2010 Census, Penza had ...
, Russia, near the school gymnasium No. 39, in honour of the dead cosmonauts, a memorial
stele
A stele ( ) or stela ( )The plural in English is sometimes stelai ( ) based on direct transliteration of the Greek, sometimes stelae or stelæ ( ) based on the inflection of Greek nouns in Latin, and sometimes anglicized to steles ( ) or stela ...
was made with quotes from the poem by the poet
Yevgeny Yevtushenko
Yevgeny Aleksandrovich Yevtushenko (; 18 July 1933 – 1 April 2017) was a Soviet and Russian poet, novelist, essayist, dramatist, screenwriter, publisher, actor, editor, university professor, and director of several films.
Biography Early lif ...
"Between our Motherland and you is a two-way eternal connection" ().
In addition to the Soviet postage stamp depicted above, a series of postage stamps of the
Emirate of Ajman
The Emirate of Ajman (; ) ( Gulf Arabic: إمارة عيمان emāratʿymān) is one of the seven emirates of the United Arab Emirates. It joined the United Arab Emirates federation on December 2, 1971. It has an area of 259 square kilometers ...
and
Bulgaria
Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...
was issued in memory of the cosmonauts in 1971.
Equatorial Guinea
Equatorial Guinea, officially the Republic of Equatorial Guinea, is a country on the west coast of Central Africa. It has an area of . Formerly the colony of Spanish Guinea, its post-independence name refers to its location both near the Equ ...
also released a series of stamps depicting the entire Soyuz 11 mission.
See also
*
List of spaceflight-related accidents and incidents
*
Apollo 1
Apollo 1, initially designated AS-204, was planned to be the first crewed mission of the Apollo program, the American undertaking to land the first man on the Moon. It was planned to launch on February 21, 1967, as the first low Earth orbital ...
*
Space Shuttle ''Challenger'' disaster
*
Space Shuttle ''Columbia'' disaster
*
Timeline of longest spaceflights
Many of the first human spaceflights set records measured in hours and days, the space station missions of the 1970s and 1980s pushed this to weeks and months, and by the 1990s the record was pushed to over a year and has remained there into the ...
Notes
References
Bibliography
*
*
*
External links
*
Mir Hardware Heritage – 1.7.3 (Wikisource)
Webpage with pictures of the original and replaced memorial
{{Orbital launches in 1971
Crewed Soyuz missions
Space program fatalities
Space accidents and incidents in the Soviet Union
1971 in the Soviet Union
Decompression accidents and incidents
Spacecraft launched in 1971
Spacecraft which reentered in 1971
Space missions that ended in failure