Fate of Russia’s Damaged Soyuz Spacecraft to Be Decided in January

On December 11th, 2019, an emergency occurred in space aboard the Soyuz MS-15, a Russian space aircraft that was headed to the International Space Station (ISS). The emergency caused the spacecraft to blast off course and, as a result, the emergency landing system was activated in the Kazakh steppes. All crew members, including Russian cosmonaut Oleg Skripochka, Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano, and NASA astronaut Andrew Morgan, landed safely and are now back to Earth and in good health.

Now, the focus has shifted to the fate of the damaged Soyuz spacecraft, which was launched by the Russian space agency, Roscosmos. According to officials, the spacecraft is still in stable orbit and is expected to remain so until later this month. At this point, the craft will begin to fall back to Earth, which has led to some speculation about how the spacecraft will be dealt with and how the landing process will be conducted.

In order to determine the fate of the Soyuz, the Russian Government plans to convene a special panel in January to assess the situation. The panel is expected to examine data collected by the craft, review potential dangers posed by the craft, and determine the best course of action.

If the panel determines that the Soyuz is too badly damaged to be of any further use in space, the Russian government could decide to deorbit the craft. In this scenario, the atmosphere would burn up the spacecraft before it reaches Earth’s surface. However, if the craft is judged to be still intact and capable of carrying out its mission, the panel could recommend that the Russian space agency restore the craft and possibly relaunch it back into space.

In any case, the decision of what to do with the damaged Soyuz spacecraft will be determined in January. Until then, the spacecraft will remain in its stable orbit, as it awaits its fate. Meanwhile, Roscosmos continues to use different methods to try to evaluate the craft and make sure that it is safe for future use.

Whatever happens to the Soyuz, there is no one who wishes for a similar emergency to occur again. The crew aboard the Soyuz MS-15 was fortunate to make it back to Earth in one piece, but future spacecraft and crew members may not be so lucky. As a result, this incident serves as a reminder that space exploration always carries with it risks and dangers, no matter how many precautions are taken.