Engineering:Splashdown

From HandWiki

Splashdown is the method of landing a spacecraft or launch vehicle in a body of water, usually by parachute. This has been the primary recovery method of American capsules including NASA's Mercury, Gemini, Apollo and Orion along with the private SpaceX Dragon. It is also possible for the Boeing Starliner, Russian Soyuz, and the Chinese Shenzhou crewed capsules to land in water in case of contingency. NASA recovered the Space Shuttle solid rocket boosters (SRBs) via splashdown, as is done for Rocket Lab's Electron first stage.

As the name suggests, the vehicle parachutes into an ocean or other large body of water. Due to its low density and viscosity, water cushions the spacecraft enough that there is no need for a braking rocket to slow the final descent as is the case with Russian and Chinese crewed space capsules or airbags as is the case with the Starliner.[1]

The American practice came in part because American launch sites are on the coastline and launch primarily over water.[2] Russian launch sites such as Baikonur Cosmodrome are far inland, and most early launch aborts would descend on land.

History

Apollo 14 returns to Earth, 1971.

The splashdown method of landing was used for Mercury, Gemini and Apollo (including Skylab, which used Apollo capsules). Soyuz 23 unintentionally landed on a freezing lake with slushy patches of ice during a snowstorm.[3]Cite error: Invalid parameter in <ref> tag File:SpaceX CRS 25 Splashdown (1920x1080).webm Both the SpaceX Dragon 1 and Dragon 2 capsules were designed to use the splashdown method of landing.[lower-alpha 1] The original cargo Dragon splashed down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Baja California. At the request of NASA, both the crew and cargo variations of the Dragon 2 capsule splash down off the coast of Florida, either in the Atlantic Ocean or the Gulf of Mexico.[5][6]

The early design concept for Orion (then known as the Crew Exploration Vehicle) featured recovery on land using a combination of parachutes and airbags, although it was also designed to make a contingency splashdown if needed. Due to weight considerations, the airbag design concept was dropped for Orion, and it conducts landings via splashdown in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California.[7]

Disadvantages

Perhaps the most dangerous aspect is the possibility of the spacecraft flooding and sinking. For example, when the hatch of Gus Grissom's Liberty Bell 7 capsule blew prematurely, the capsule sank and Grissom almost drowned. Since the spacecraft's flooding will occur from a location in its hull where it ruptures first, it is important to determine the location on the hull that experiences the highest loading.[8] This location along the impacting side is determined by the surrounding 'air cushion' layer, which deforms the water surface before the moment of impact, and results in a non-trivial geometry of the liquid surface during first touch-down.[9][10][11] Soyuz 23 was dragged under a frozen lake by its parachutes. The crew became incapacitated by carbon dioxide and were rescued after a nine-hour recovery operation.[12]

If the capsule comes down far from any recovery forces, the crew may be stranded at sea for an extended period of time. As an example, Scott Carpenter in Aurora 7 overshot the assigned landing zone by 400 kilometers (250 mi). These recovery operation mishaps can be mitigated by placing several vessels on standby in different locations, but this can be an expensive option.

Exposure to salt water can have adverse effects on vehicles intended for reuse, such as Dragon.[13]

Launch vehicles

Space Shuttle SRB being recovered by Freedom Star after splashing down on STS-133

Some reusable launch vehicles recover components via splashdown. This was first seen with the Space Shuttle SRBs, with STS-1 launching in 1981. Out of 135 launches, NASA recovered all but two sets of SRBs.[14]

SpaceX has conducted propulsive splashdowns of the Falcon 9 first stage, Super Heavy booster, and Starship spacecraft. These vehicles are designed to land on land or modified barges and do not always survive intact after tipping over in the water; SpaceX has mainly conducted propulsive splashdowns for development flights. After the launch of CRS-16, the booster experienced a control issue and splashed down in the ocean instead of making an intended landing at Landing Zone 1.[15]

Rocket Lab intended to catch the first stage of their Electron rocket with a helicopter as it descended under parachute, but abandoned this idea in favor of parachute splashdown. In 2020, Rocket Lab made their first booster recovery.[16]

List of spacecraft splashdowns

Crewed spacecraft

# Spacecraft Agency Landing date Coordinates Recovery ship Miss distance (km) Reference
1 Freedom 7 NASA May 5, 1961 [ ⚑ ] 27°13.7′N 75°53′W / 27.2283°N 75.883°W / 27.2283; -75.883 (Freedom 7) missing name 5.6 km (3.5 mi) [17]
2 Liberty Bell 7 NASA July 21, 1961 [ ⚑ ] 27°32′N 75°44′W / 27.533°N 75.733°W / 27.533; -75.733 (Liberty Bell 7) missing name 9.3 km (5.8 mi) [18]
3 Friendship 7 NASA February 20, 1962 [ ⚑ ] 21°26′N 68°41′W / 21.433°N 68.683°W / 21.433; -68.683 (Friendship 7) missing name
(USS Randolph**) 		74 [19]
4 Aurora 7 NASA May 24, 1962 [ ⚑ ] 19°27′N 63°59′W / 19.45°N 63.983°W / 19.45; -63.983 (Aurora 7) missing name
( missing name**) 		400 [20]
5 Sigma 7 NASA October 3, 1962 [ ⚑ ] 32°06′N 174°28′W / 32.1°N 174.467°W / 32.1; -174.467 (Sigma 7) missing name 7.4 [21]
6 Faith 7 NASA May 16, 1963 [ ⚑ ] 27°20′N 176°26′W / 27.333°N 176.433°W / 27.333; -176.433 (Faith 7) USS Kearsarge 8.1 [22]
7 Gemini 3 NASA March 23, 1965 [ ⚑ ] 22°26′N 70°51′W / 22.433°N 70.85°W / 22.433; -70.85 (Gemini 3) USS Intrepid 111 [23]
8 Gemini 4 NASA June 7, 1965 [ ⚑ ] 27°44′N 74°11′W / 27.733°N 74.183°W / 27.733; -74.183 (Gemini 4) missing name 81 [24]
9 Gemini 5 NASA August 29, 1965 [ ⚑ ] 29°44′N 69°45′W / 29.733°N 69.75°W / 29.733; -69.75 (Gemini 5) USS Lake Champlain 270 [25]
10 Gemini 7 NASA December 18, 1965 [ ⚑ ] 25°25′N 70°07′W / 25.417°N 70.117°W / 25.417; -70.117 (Gemini 7) USS Wasp 12 [26]
11 Gemini 6A NASA December 16, 1965 [ ⚑ ] 23°35′N 67°50′W / 23.583°N 67.833°W / 23.583; -67.833 (Gemini 6A) USS Wasp 13 [27]
12 Gemini 8 NASA March 17, 1966 [ ⚑ ] 25°14′N 136°0′E / 25.233°N 136°E / 25.233; 136 (Gemini 8) missing name
( missing name**) 		2 [28]
13 Gemini 9A NASA June 6, 1966 [ ⚑ ] 27°52′N 75°0′W / 27.867°N 75°W / 27.867; -75 (Gemini 9A) USS Wasp 0.7 [29]
14 Gemini 10 NASA July 21, 1966 [ ⚑ ] 26°45′N 71°57′W / 26.75°N 71.95°W / 26.75; -71.95 (Gemini 10) missing name 6 [30]
15 Gemini 11 NASA September 15, 1966 [ ⚑ ] 24°15′N 70°0′W / 24.25°N 70°W / 24.25; -70 (Gemini 11) missing name 5 [31]
16 Gemini 12 NASA November 15, 1966 [ ⚑ ] 24°35′N 69°57′W / 24.583°N 69.95°W / 24.583; -69.95 (Gemini 12) USS Wasp 5 [32]
17 Apollo 7 NASA October 22, 1968 [ ⚑ ] 27°32′N 64°04′W / 27.533°N 64.067°W / 27.533; -64.067 (Apollo 7) missing name 3 [33]
18 Apollo 8 NASA December 27, 1968 [ ⚑ ] 8°7.5′N 165°1.2′W / 8.125°N 165.02°W / 8.125; -165.02 (Apollo 8) missing name 2 [34]
19 Apollo 9 NASA March 13, 1969 [ ⚑ ] 23°15′N 67°56′W / 23.25°N 67.933°W / 23.25; -67.933 (Apollo 9) USS Guadalcanal 5 [35][36]
20 Apollo 10 NASA May 26, 1969 [ ⚑ ] 15°2′S 164°39′W / 15.033°S 164.65°W / -15.033; -164.65 (Apollo 10) missing name 2.4 [37][38]
21 Apollo 11 NASA July 24, 1969 [ ⚑ ] 13°19′N 169°9′W / 13.317°N 169.15°W / 13.317; -169.15 (Apollo 11) missing name 3.13 [39][40]
22 Apollo 12 NASA November 24, 1969 [ ⚑ ] 15°47′S 165°9′W / 15.783°S 165.15°W / -15.783; -165.15 (Apollo 12) USS Hornet 3.7 [41][42]
23 Apollo 13 NASA April 17, 1970 [ ⚑ ] 21°38′S 165°22′W / 21.633°S 165.367°W / -21.633; -165.367 (Apollo 13) missing name 1.85 [43][44]
24 Apollo 14 NASA February 9, 1971 [ ⚑ ] 27°1′S 172°39′W / 27.017°S 172.65°W / -27.017; -172.65 (Apollo 14) missing name 1.1 [45][46]
25 Apollo 15 NASA August 7, 1971 [ ⚑ ] 26°7′N 158°8′W / 26.117°N 158.133°W / 26.117; -158.133 (Apollo 15) missing name 1.85 [47][48]
26 Apollo 16 NASA April 27, 1972 [ ⚑ ] 0°43′S 156°13′W / 0.717°S 156.217°W / -0.717; -156.217 (Apollo 16) missing name 0.55 [49][50]
27 Apollo 17 NASA December 19, 1972 [ ⚑ ] 17°53′S 166°7′W / 17.883°S 166.117°W / -17.883; -166.117 (Apollo 17) USS Ticonderoga 1.85 [51][52]
28 Skylab 2 NASA June 22, 1973 [ ⚑ ] 24°45′N 127°2′W / 24.75°N 127.033°W / 24.75; -127.033 (Skylab 2) USS Ticonderoga [53]
29 Skylab 3 NASA September 25, 1973 [ ⚑ ] 30°47′N 120°29′W / 30.783°N 120.483°W / 30.783; -120.483 (Skylab 3) USS New Orleans [54]
30 Skylab 4 NASA February 8, 1974 [ ⚑ ] 31°18′N 119°48′W / 31.3°N 119.8°W / 31.3; -119.8 (Skylab 4) USS New Orleans [54]
31 Apollo CSM-111 NASA July 24, 1975 [ ⚑ ] 22°N 163°W / 22°N 163°W / 22; -163 (ASTP Apollo) USS New Orleans 1.3 [55][56]
32 Soyuz 23 USSR October 16, 1976 Lake Tengiz Mi-8 helicopter [57]
33 Crew Dragon Demo-2 SpaceX August 2, 2020 [ ⚑ ] 29°48′N 87°30′W / 29.8°N 87.5°W / 29.8; -87.5 (Crew Dragon Demo-2) GO Navigator [58]
33 Crew Dragon Crew-1 SpaceX May 2, 2021 [ ⚑ ] 29°32′N 86°11′W / 29.533°N 86.183°W / 29.533; -86.183 (Crew Dragon Crew-1) GO Navigator [59]
34 Inspiration4 SpaceX September 18, 2021 GO Searcher [60]
35 Crew Dragon Crew-2 SpaceX November 7, 2021 GO Navigator
35 Axiom Mission 1 SpaceX April 25, 2022 Megan
36 Crew Dragon Crew-3 SpaceX May 6, 2022 Shannon [61]
37 Crew Dragon Crew-4 SpaceX October 14, 2022 Megan
38 Crew Dragon Crew-5 SpaceX March 11, 2023 Shannon
39 Axiom Mission 2 SpaceX May 31, 2023 Megan
40 Polaris Dawn SpaceX Sep 15, 2024

Uncrewed spacecraft

Spacecraft Agency Landing date Coordinates Recovery ship Miss distance
Jupiter AM-18
(Able and Baker) 		USAF May 28, 1959 48 to 96 km (30 to 60 mi) N Antigua Island missing name 16 km (9.9 mi)[62]
Mercury-Big Joe NASA September 9, 1959 2,407 km (1,496 mi) SE Cape Canaveral missing name 925 km (575 mi)[63]
Mercury-Little Joe 2

Sam The Rhesus Monkey

NASA December 4, 1959 319 km (198 mi) SE Wallops Island, Virginia missing name ? km[64]
Mercury-Redstone 1A NASA December 19, 1960 378.2 km (235.0 mi) SE Cape Canaveral missing name 12.9 km (8.0 mi)[65]
Mercury-Redstone 2 NASA January 31, 1961 675.9 km (420.0 mi) SE Cape Canaveral missing name[66] 209.2 km (130.0 mi)[67]
Mercury-Atlas 2 NASA February 21, 1961 2,293.3 km (1,425.0 mi) SE Cape Canaveral USS Donner[66] 20.9 km (13.0 mi)[68]
Discoverer 25
(Corona 9017) 		USAF June 16, 1961 mid-air recovery missed
Mercury-Atlas 4 NASA September 13, 1961 257.5 km (160.0 mi) E of Bermuda missing name 64.4 km (40.0 mi)[69]
Mercury-Atlas 5 NASA November 29, 1961 804.7 km (500.0 mi) SE of Bermuda missing name ? km[70]
Gemini 2 NASA January 19, 1965 [ ⚑ ] 16°33.9′N 49°46.27′W / 16.565°N 49.77117°W / 16.565; -49.77117 (Gemini 2) 3,423.1 km (2,127.0 mi) downrange from KSC USS Lake Champlain 38.6 km (24.0 mi)[71]
AS-201 NASA February 26, 1966 [ ⚑ ] 8°11′S 11°09′W / 8.18°S 11.15°W / -8.18; -11.15 (Apollo 201) 8,472 km (5,264 mi) downrange from KSC USS Boxer ? km[72]
AS-202 NASA August 25, 1966 [ ⚑ ] 16°07′N 168°54′E / 16.12°N 168.9°E / 16.12; 168.9 (Apollo 202) 804.7 km (500.0 mi) southwest of Wake Island USS Hornet ? km[72]
Gemini 2-MOL USAF November 3, 1966 8,149.7 km (5,064.0 mi) SE KSC near Ascension Island missing name 11.26 km (7.00 mi)[73]
Apollo 4 NASA November 9, 1967 [ ⚑ ] 30°06′N 172°32′W / 30.1°N 172.53°W / 30.1; -172.53 (Apollo 4) missing name 16 km (9.9 mi)[72]
Apollo 6 NASA April 4, 1968 [ ⚑ ] 27°40′N 157°59′W / 27.667°N 157.983°W / 27.667; -157.983 (Apollo 6) USS Okinawa ? km[72]
Zond 5 USSR September 21, 1968 [ ⚑ ] 32°38′S 65°33′E / 32.63°S 65.55°E / -32.63; 65.55 (Zond 5) USSR recovery naval vessel missing name and missing name 105 km (65 mi)[74][75]
Zond 8 USSR October 27, 1970 730 km (450 mi) SE of the Chagos Archipelago, Indian Ocean USSR recovery ship missing name 24 km[76][77]
Cosmos 1374 USSR June 4, 1982 [ ⚑ ] 17°S 98°E / 17°S 98°E / -17; 98 (Cosmos 1374) 560 km (350 mi) S of Cocos Islands, Indian Ocean USSR recovery ship ? km
Cosmos 1445 USSR March 15, 1983 556 km (345 mi) S of Cocos Islands, Indian Ocean USSR recovery ship ? km
Cosmos 1517 USSR December 27, 1983 near Crimea, Black Sea USSR recovery ship ? km
Cosmos 1614 USSR December 19, 1984 ? km W of the Crimea, Black Sea USSR recovery ship ? km
COTS Demo Flight 1 SpaceX December 8, 2010 800 km (500 mi) west of Baja California, Mexico, Pacific Ocean ? 0.8 km (0.50 mi)[78]
Dragon C2+ SpaceX May 31, 2012 [ ⚑ ] 26°55′N 120°42′W / 26.92°N 120.7°W / 26.92; -120.7 (Dragon C2+) ? ?[79]
CRS SpX-1 SpaceX October 28, 2012 ? American Islander[80] ?[81]
CRS SpX-2 SpaceX March 27, 2013 ? American Islander ?[82]
Exploration Flight Test 1 NASA December 5, 2014 [ ⚑ ] 23.6°N 116.4°W / 23.6°N 116.4°W / 23.6; -116.4 (EFT-1), 443 kilometres (275 mi) west of Baja California missing name
Crew Dragon Demo-1 SpaceX March 8, 2019 In the Gulf of Mexico, off the coast of Pensacola, Florida GO Searcher
SpaceX CRS-21 SpaceX January 14, 2020 In the Gulf of Mexico, off the coast of Tampa, Florida GO Navigator
Artemis I NASA December 11, 2022 Pacific Ocean, west of Baja California USS Portland 4 nm
IFT-4 SpaceX June 6, 2024 Indian Ocean
IFT-5 SpaceX October 13, 2024 Indian Ocean
IFT-6 SpaceX November 19, 2024 Indian Ocean
  • The Apollo 15 spacecraft splashed down safely despite a parachute failure. (NASA)
    The Apollo 15 spacecraft splashed down safely despite a parachute failure. (NASA)
  • Apollo 15 splashdown (NASA)
    Apollo 15 splashdown (NASA)
  • Apollo 11 after splashdown (NASA)
    Apollo 11 after splashdown (NASA)
  • Apollo 13 hoisted onto ship (NASA)
    Apollo 13 hoisted onto ship (NASA)
  • Gemini water egress training
    Gemini water egress training
  • Recovery of the Dragon C2+ on May 31, 2012
    Recovery of the Dragon C2+ on May 31, 2012
  • Recovery of the EFT-1 Orion, December 5, 2014
    Recovery of the EFT-1 Orion, December 5, 2014
  • Landing of SpaceX Demo-2, 2 August 2020
    Landing of SpaceX Demo-2, 2 August 2020
  • Artemis II Orion capsule well dock Underway Recovery Test 10 (URT-10)
    Artemis II Orion capsule well dock Underway Recovery Test 10 (URT-10)

See also

Map all coordinates using: OpenStreetMap 
Download coordinates as: KML · GPX

Notes

  1. ↑ Dragon 2 was originally intended to propulsively land using its SuperDraco engines, but this was abandoned except for contingency in case of parachute failure.[4]

References

  1. ↑ Tous, Marcos (28 June 2024). "The science behind splashdown—aerospace engineer explains how NASA and SpaceX get spacecraft safely back". https://theconversation.com/the-science-behind-splashdown-an-aerospace-engineer-explains-how-nasa-and-spacex-get-spacecraft-safely-back-on-earth-232786. 
  2. ↑ "Launch Services Program Launch Sites". NASA. 2009-05-14. https://www.nasa.gov/centers/kennedy/launchingrockets/sites.html. 
  3. ↑ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine{{cbignore} b|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m4pD1L7hedA%7Ctitle=The Accidental Spacecraft Splashdown Which Almost Killed Its Crew|date=May 16, 2020 |via=www.youtube.com}}
  4. ↑ McRea, Aaron (October 10, 2024). "Dragon receives long-planned propulsive landing upgrade after years of development". https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2024/10/dragon-propulsive-landing/. 
  5. ↑ Clark, Stephen (12 January 2021). "Cargo Dragon heads for splashdown off Florida's west coast". Spaceflight Now. https://spaceflightnow.com/2021/01/12/cargo-dragon-heads-for-splashdown-off-floridas-west-coast/. 
  6. ↑ "AUDIT OF COMMERCIAL RESUPPLY SERVICES TO THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION". https://oig.nasa.gov/docs/IG-18-016.pdf. 
  7. ↑ "Solar System Exploration: News & Events: News Archive: NASA Announces Key Decision For Next Deep Space Transportation System". Solarsystem.nasa.gov. 2011-05-24. http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/news/display.cfm?News_ID=37403. 
  8. ↑ Jain, U. (2021). "Air entrapment and its effect on pressure impulses in the slamming of a flat disc on water". Journal of Fluid Mechanics 938 (4). doi:10.1017/jfm.2021.846. Bibcode: 2021JFM...928A..31J. 
  9. ↑ Jain, U. (2021). "Air-cushioning effect and Kelvin-Helmholtz instability before the slamming of a disk on water". Physical Review Fluids 6 (4). doi:10.1103/PhysRevFluids.6.L042001. Bibcode: 2021PhRvF...6d2001J. 
  10. ↑ Verhagen, J.H.G (1967). "The Impact of a Flat Plate on a Water Surface". Journal of Ship Research 11 (4): 211–223. doi:10.5957/jsr.1967.11.4.211. https://archive.org/details/Verhagen1967. 
  11. ↑ Asryan, N.G. (1972). "Solid plate impact on surface of incompressible fluid in the presence of a gas layer between them". Izv. Akad. Nauk Arm. SSR Mekh. https://archive.org/details/Asrian1972_201803. 
  12. ↑ "Carbon Dioxide (CO2) OCHMO-TB-004 Rev C". https://www.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/ochmo-tb-004-carbon-dioxide.pdf. 
  13. ↑ "A FRAMEWORK FOR ASSESSING THE REUSABILITY OF HARDWARE (REUSABLE ROCKET ENGINES". NASA. pp. 4–5. https://ntrs.nasa.gov/api/citations/20170000606/downloads/20170000606.pdf. 
  14. ↑ Gebhardt, Chris (8 July 2012). "One year on – Review notes superb performance of STS-135's SRBs". https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2012/07/final-flight-superb-performance-sts-135s-srbs/. 
  15. ↑ Bergin, Chris (13 January 2019). "CRS-16 Dragon returns to Earth following ISS departure". https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2019/01/crs-16-dragon-departs-iss-return-journey/. 
  16. ↑ Coldewey, Devin (19 November 2020). "Rocket Lab makes its first booster recovery after successful launch". https://techcrunch.com/2020/11/19/rocket-lab-makes-its-first-booster-recovery-after-successful-launch/. 
  17. ↑ Ezell (1988) p. 143
  18. ↑ Ezell (1988) p. 144
  19. ↑ Ezell, Volume II, p. 145
  20. ↑ Ezell, Volume II, p. 146
  21. ↑ Ezell, Volume II, p. 147
  22. ↑ Ezell, Volume II, p. 148
  23. ↑ Ezell, Volume II, p. 159
  24. ↑ Ezell, Volume II, p. 160
  25. ↑ Ezell, Volume II, p. 161
  26. ↑ Ezell, Volume II, p. 162
  27. ↑ Ezell, Volume II, p. 163
  28. ↑ Ezell, Volume II, p. 164
  29. ↑ Ezell, Volume II, p. 165
  30. ↑ Ezell, Volume II, p. 166
  31. ↑ Ezell, Volume II, p. 167
  32. ↑ Ezell, Volume II, p. 168
  33. ↑ Ezell, Volume II, p. 188
  34. ↑ Ezell, Volume II, p. 189
  35. ↑ Ezell, Volume III, p. 83
  36. ↑ Orloff, p. 58
  37. ↑ Ezell, Volume III, p. 84
  38. ↑ Orloff, p. 78
  39. ↑ Ezell, Volume III, p. 85
  40. ↑ Orloff, p. 98
  41. ↑ Ezell, Volume III, p. 86
  42. ↑ Orloff, p. 120
  43. ↑ Ezell, Volume III, p. 87
  44. ↑ Orloff, p. 143
  45. ↑ Ezell, Volume III, p. 88
  46. ↑ Orloff, p. 168
  47. ↑ Ezell, Volume III, p. 89
  48. ↑ Orloff, p. 197
  49. ↑ Ezell, Volume III, p. 91
  50. ↑ Orloff, p. 225
  51. ↑ Ezell, Volume III, p. 92
  52. ↑ Orloff, p. 251
  53. ↑ Ezell, Volume III, p. 104
  54. ↑ 54.0 54.1 Ezell, Volume III, p. 105
  55. ↑ Ezell, Volume III, p. 112
  56. ↑ "ASTP Apollo Miss Distance", ASTP Summary Science Report - Mission Description p. 36,
  57. ↑ "Cosmonauts land in lake in snowstorm". The Birmingham News. UPI. October 18, 1976. https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-birmingham-news-cosmonauts-land-in-l/171148700/. 
  58. ↑ "NASA Astronauts in SpaceX Capsule Make First Water Landing Since 1975". The New York Times. August 2, 2020. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/02/science/spacex-nasa-return.html?smtyp=cur&smid=tw-nytimes. 
  59. ↑ "SpaceX Dragon splashes down in Gulf of Mexico, bringing 4 astronauts home". Orlando Sentinel. May 2, 2021. https://www.orlandosentinel.com/space/os-bz-spacex-crew1-astronaut-splashdown-20210502-3ujhszbeejhxtbmb55lynkzcc4-story.html. 
  60. ↑ "SpaceX capsule returns four civilians from orbit, capping off first tourism mission". September 18, 2021. https://www.cnn.com/2021/09/18/tech/spacex-inspiration4-splashdown-scn/index.html. 
  61. ↑ Jackie Wattles (May 6, 2022). "SpaceX's wildly busy year continues with astronaut splashdown". https://www.cnn.com/2022/05/06/tech/spacex-crew-3-nasa-splashdown-scn/index.html. 
  62. ↑ "Animals Survive 1,500-Mile Ride In Rocket Nose". The Windsor Daily Star. Associated Press (Windsor, Ontario). May 28, 1959. https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=EzY_AAAAIBAJ&dq=jupiter&pg=2850%2C525201. 
  63. ↑ "Big Joe Shot". https://history.nasa.gov/SP-4201/ch7-6.htm. 
  64. ↑ "Monkey Sent Aloft to Test Equipment for U.S. Astronauts". The Buffalo News (Buffalo, New York). December 4, 1959. https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-buffalo-news-monkey-sent-aloft-to-te/183220677/. 
  65. ↑ "Man-In-Space Capsule To Be Closely Studied". The Florence Times. Associated Press (Florence, Alabama). December 20, 1960. https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=uR4sAAAAIBAJ&dq=valley%20forge%20mercury&pg=811,5955043. 
  66. ↑ 66.0 66.1 "USS Donner LSD20". Homestead.com. http://www.homestead.com/USSDONNERLSD20/index.html. 
  67. ↑ "Chimp Survives Space Shot". The Journal Herald. February 1, 1961. https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-journal-herald-chimp-survives-space/183220382/. 
  68. ↑ "Space Capsule Soars 107 Miles High". The Florence Times. Associated Press (Florence, Alabama). February 21, 1961. https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=bQAsAAAAIBAJ&dq=donner&pg=1439,5138841. 
  69. ↑ "U.S. Robot Orbited, Returned". Meriden Journal. September 13, 1961. https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=SeRIAAAAIBAJ&dq=decatur&pg=1550,1134316. 
  70. ↑ "Capsule Trouble Forces Early Landing Of Craft". Toledo Blade. Associated Press (Toledo, Ohio). November 29, 1961. https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=kp5OAAAAIBAJ&dq=stormes&pg=6019,4614561. 
  71. ↑ "Gemini 2 Distance traveled, Landing Point, Miss Distance", Manned Space Flight Network Performance Analysis for the GT-2 Mission; Pg V - Distance traveled, Page 21 - Landing Point, Miss Distance, (NASA X-552-65-204)
  72. ↑ 72.0 72.1 72.2 72.3 Mansfield, Cheryl L. (January 9, 2018). "Apollo-Saturn Unmanned Missions". http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/apollo/missions/Apollo-Saturn-Uncrewed.html. 
  73. ↑ "Titan 3 Gives Spectacular Space Show". Sarasota Journal (Sarasota, Florida). November 3, 1966. https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=jRQhAAAAIBAJ&dq=titan&pg=5563%2C377286. 
  74. ↑ Michael Cassutt (2007). Red Moon. Tom Doherty Associates. p. 320. ISBN 978-1-4299-7172-0. https://books.google.com/books?id=QdBP8E4di0sC&pg=PA320. 
  75. ↑ "Zond 5, Landing Point, Miss Distance" , NASA Solar System Exploration - Zond 5, Landing Point, Miss Distance.
  76. ↑ Brian Harvey (2007). Soviet and Russian Lunar Exploration. Springer Science & Business Media. p. 218. ISBN 978-0-387-73976-2. https://books.google.com/books?id=nVeY7vMCtOkC&pg=PA218. 
  77. ↑ "Zond 8, Landing Point" , NASA Solar System Exploration - Zond 8, Splashdown area.
  78. ↑ ""COTS 1 (SpaceX Dragon 1), Splashdown area"". Archived from the original on December 10, 2010. https://web.archive.org/web/20101210214816/http://www.spacex.com/press.php?page=20101208. 
  79. ↑ "History is made as Dragon splashes down safely in the Pacific! | Bad Astronomy | Discover Magazine". Blogs.discovermagazine.com. http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/badastronomy/2012/05/31/history-is-made-as-dragon-splashes-down-safely-in-the-pacific/. 
  80. ↑ "American Island". http://www.marinetraffic.com/ais/shipdetails.aspx?MMSI=367035570. 
  81. ↑ "Dragon Returns to Earth". NASA. 2012-10-28. http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/living/index.html. 
  82. ↑ "SpaceX brings home Dragon with 2,700 pounds of cargo". Spaceflightnow. 2013-03-26. http://www.spaceflightnow.com/falcon9/005/130326splashdown/. 

Bibliography



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