AI tools
For aircraft landing on water, see Water landing. For other uses, see Splashdown (disambiguation).

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.

Thumb
Apollo 15 makes contact with the Pacific Ocean.
Thumb
Locations of Atlantic Ocean splashdowns of American spacecraft prior to the 21st century
Thumb
Locations of Pacific Ocean splashdowns of American spacecraft

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

Summarize
Perspective
Thumb
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][4]

On early Mercury flights, a helicopter attached a cable to the capsule, lifted it from the water and delivered it to a nearby ship. This was changed after the sinking of Liberty Bell 7. All later Mercury, Gemini and Apollo capsules had a flotation collar (similar to a rubber life raft) attached to the spacecraft to increase their buoyancy. The spacecraft would then be brought alongside a ship and lifted onto deck by crane.

After the flotation collar is attached, a hatch on the spacecraft is usually opened. At that time, some astronauts decide to be hoisted aboard a helicopter for a ride to the recovery ship and some decided to stay with the spacecraft and be lifted aboard ship via crane. All Gemini and Apollo flights (Apollos 7 to 17) used the former, while Mercury missions from Mercury 6 to Mercury 9, as well as all Skylab missions and Apollo-Soyuz used the latter, especially the Skylab flights as to preserve all medical data. During the Gemini and Apollo programs, NASA used MV Retriever for the astronauts to practice water egress.

Apollo 11 was America's first Moon landing mission and marked the first time that humans walked on the surface of another planetary body. The possibility of the astronauts bringing pathogens from the Moon back to Earth was remote, but not ruled out. To contain any possible contaminants at the scene of the splashdown, the astronauts donned special Biological Isolation Garments and the outside of the suits were scrubbed prior to the astronauts being hoisted aboard USS Hornet and escorted safely inside a Mobile Quarantine Facility.[5]

The splashdown of the SpaceX CRS-25 resupply mission

Both the SpaceX Dragon 1 and Dragon 2 capsules were designed to use the splashdown method of landing.[a] 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.[7][8]

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.[9]

Disadvantages

Summarize
Perspective

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.[10] 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.[11][12][13] 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.[14]

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.[15]

Launch vehicles

Thumb
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.[16]

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.[17]

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.[18]

List of spacecraft splashdowns

Summarize
Perspective

Crewed spacecraft

More information #, 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 USS Lake Champlain 5.6 km (3.5 mi) [19]
2 Liberty Bell 7 NASA July 21, 1961 27°32′N 75°44′W USS Randolph 9.3 km (5.8 mi) [20]
3 Friendship 7 NASA February 20, 1962 21°26′N 68°41′W USS Noa
(USS Randolph**)		 74 [21]
4 Aurora 7 NASA May 24, 1962 19°27′N 63°59′W USS John R. Pierce
(USS Intrepid**)		 400 [22]
5 Sigma 7 NASA October 3, 1962 32°06′N 174°28′W USS Kearsarge 7.4 [23]
6 Faith 7 NASA May 16, 1963 27°20′N 176°26′W USS Kearsarge 8.1 [24]
7 Gemini 3 NASA March 23, 1965 22°26′N 70°51′W USS Intrepid 111 [25]
8 Gemini 4 NASA June 7, 1965 27°44′N 74°11′W USS Wasp 81 [26]
9 Gemini 5 NASA August 29, 1965 29°44′N 69°45′W USS Lake Champlain 270 [27]
10 Gemini 7 NASA December 18, 1965 25°25′N 70°07′W USS Wasp 12 [28]
11 Gemini 6A NASA December 16, 1965 23°35′N 67°50′W USS Wasp 13 [29]
12 Gemini 8 NASA March 17, 1966 25°14′N 136°0′E USS Leonard F. Mason
(USS Boxer**)		 2 [30]
13 Gemini 9A NASA June 6, 1966 27°52′N 75°0′W USS Wasp 0.7 [31]
14 Gemini 10 NASA July 21, 1966 26°45′N 71°57′W USS Guadalcanal 6 [32]
15 Gemini 11 NASA September 15, 1966 24°15′N 70°0′W USS Guam 5 [33]
16 Gemini 12 NASA November 15, 1966 24°35′N 69°57′W USS Wasp 5 [34]
17 Apollo 7 NASA October 22, 1968 27°32′N 64°04′W USS Essex 3 [35]
18 Apollo 8 NASA December 27, 1968 8°7.5′N 165°1.2′W USS Yorktown 2 [36]
19 Apollo 9 NASA March 13, 1969 23°15′N 67°56′W USS Guadalcanal 5 [37][38]
20 Apollo 10 NASA May 26, 1969 15°2′S 164°39′W USS Princeton 2.4 [39][40]
21 Apollo 11 NASA July 24, 1969 13°19′N 169°9′W USS Hornet 3.13 [41][42]
22 Apollo 12 NASA November 24, 1969 15°47′S 165°9′W USS Hornet 3.7 [43][44]
23 Apollo 13 NASA April 17, 1970 21°38′S 165°22′W USS Iwo Jima 1.85 [45][46]
24 Apollo 14 NASA February 9, 1971 27°1′S 172°39′W USS New Orleans 1.1 [47][48]
25 Apollo 15 NASA August 7, 1971 26°7′N 158°8′W USS Okinawa 1.85 [49][50]
26 Apollo 16 NASA April 27, 1972 0°43′S 156°13′W USS Ticonderoga 0.55 [51][52]
27 Apollo 17 NASA December 19, 1972 17°53′S 166°7′W USS Ticonderoga 1.85 [53][54]
28 Skylab 2 NASA June 22, 1973 24°45′N 127°2′W USS Ticonderoga [55]
29 Skylab 3 NASA September 25, 1973 30°47′N 120°29′W USS New Orleans [56]
30 Skylab 4 NASA February 8, 1974 31°18′N 119°48′W USS New Orleans [56]
31 Apollo CSM-111 NASA July 24, 1975 22°N 163°W USS New Orleans 1.3 [57][58]
32 Soyuz 23 USSR October 16, 1976 Lake Tengiz Mi-8 helicopter [59]
33 Crew Dragon Demo-2 SpaceX August 2, 2020 29°48′N 87°30′W GO Navigator [60]
33 Crew Dragon Crew-1 SpaceX May 2, 2021 29°32′N 86°11′W GO Navigator [61]
34 Inspiration4 SpaceX September 18, 2021 GO Searcher [62]
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 [63]
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
Close

Uncrewed spacecraft

More information Spacecraft, Agency ...
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 USS Kiowa 16 km (9.9 mi)[64]
Mercury-Big Joe NASA September 9, 1959 2,407 km (1,496 mi) SE Cape Canaveral USS Strong 925 km (575 mi)[65]
Mercury-Little Joe 2

Sam The Rhesus Monkey

 NASA December 4, 1959 319 km (198 mi) SE Wallops Island, Virginia USS Borie  ? km[66]
Mercury-Redstone 1A NASA December 19, 1960 378.2 km (235.0 mi) SE Cape Canaveral USS Valley Forge 12.9 km (8.0 mi)[67]
Mercury-Redstone 2 NASA January 31, 1961 675.9 km (420.0 mi) SE Cape Canaveral USS Donner[68] 209.2 km (130.0 mi)[69]
Mercury-Atlas 2 NASA February 21, 1961 2,293.3 km (1,425.0 mi) SE Cape Canaveral USS Donner[68] 20.9 km (13.0 mi)[70]
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 USS Decatur 64.4 km (40.0 mi)[71]
Mercury-Atlas 5 NASA November 29, 1961 804.7 km (500.0 mi) SE of Bermuda USS Stormes  ? km[72]
Gemini 2 NASA January 19, 1965 16°33.9′N 49°46.27′W 3,423.1 km (2,127.0 mi) downrange from KSC USS Lake Champlain 38.6 km (24.0 mi)[73]
AS-201 NASA February 26, 1966 8°11′S 11°09′W 8,472 km (5,264 mi) downrange from KSC USS Boxer  ? km[74]
AS-202 NASA August 25, 1966 16°07′N 168°54′E 804.7 km (500.0 mi) southwest of Wake Island USS Hornet  ? km[74]
Gemini 2-MOL USAF November 3, 1966 8,149.7 km (5,064.0 mi) SE KSC near Ascension Island USS La Salle 11.26 km (7.00 mi)[75]
Apollo 4 NASA November 9, 1967 30°06′N 172°32′W USS Bennington 16 km (9.9 mi)[74]
Apollo 6 NASA April 4, 1968 27°40′N 157°59′W USS Okinawa  ? km[74]
Zond 5 USSR September 21, 1968 32°38′S 65°33′E USSR recovery naval vessel Borovichy and Vasiliy Golovin 105 km (65 mi)[76][77]
Zond 8 USSR October 27, 1970 730 km (450 mi) SE of the Chagos Archipelago, Indian Ocean USSR recovery ship Taman 24 km[78][79]
Cosmos 1374 USSR June 4, 1982 17°S 98°E 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)[80]
Dragon C2+ SpaceX May 31, 2012 26°55′N 120°42′W  ?  ?[81]
CRS SpX-1 SpaceX October 28, 2012  ? American Islander[82]  ?[83]
CRS SpX-2 SpaceX March 27, 2013  ? American Islander  ?[84]
Exploration Flight Test 1 NASA December 5, 2014 23.6°N 116.4°W / 23.6; -116.4 (EFT-1), 443 kilometres (275 mi) west of Baja California USS Anchorage
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
Close

Gallery

See also

Map all coordinates using OpenStreetMap

Download coordinates as:

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.[6]

References

Bibliography

External links

Wikiwand - on

Seamless Wikipedia browsing. On steroids.