Why Americans Land Spacecraft In The Ocean While The Russians Go For Solid Ground
Jalopnik • • science
Key Points:
- NASA's Artemis II Orion spacecraft splashed down in the ocean off San Diego due to technical constraints that make precise land landings difficult and risky, necessitating the traditional water landing method.
- The Russian Soyuz capsule uses retrorockets to slow down just before ground touchdown on vast, unpopulated plains in Kazakhstan, allowing for land landings despite discomfort and safety trade-offs.
- American spacecraft currently rely on parachute-assisted water landings because adding retrorockets or other slowing mechanisms increases weight and complexity, limiting crew capacity and raising costs.
- Boeing's Starliner aims to enable land landings using inflatable airbags to cushion touchdown, with successful tests including a 2024 New Mexico landing, though engine reliability issues have delayed crewed returns.
- SpaceX is developing fully reusable spacecraft like Starship, which could eventually allow astronauts to land safely on solid ground at spaceports, potentially ending the era of ocean splashdowns.