in a body of water. It was used by American manned spacecraft prior to the
. It is also possible for the
to land in water, though this is only a contingency. The only example of an (unintentional) splashdown in Soviet history is the
or other large body of water. The properties of water cushion the spacecraft enough that there is no need for a braking rocket to slow the final descent as was the case with Russian and Chinese manned space capsules, which returned to Earth over land. The American practice came in part because American launch sites are on the coastline and launch primarily over water. Russian and Chinese launch sites are far inland and most early launch aborts were likely to descend on land.
, which used Apollo capsules). On one occasion a Soviet spacecraft,
, punched through the ice of a frozen lake (nearly killing the cosmonauts), and this was
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
. 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. (Because of his overshoot aboard
alone egressed through the nose of his capsule instead of through the hatch, waiting for recovery forces in his life raft.) All Gemini and Apollo flights (Apollos
) 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
featured recovery on land using a combination of parachutes and airbags, although it was also designed to make a contingency splashdown (only for an in-flight abort) if needed. Due to weight considerations, the airbag design concept was dropped. The present design concept features landings via splashdown in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California.
While the water the spacecraft landed on would cushion it to a degree, the impact could still be quite violent for the
There are several disadvantages for splashdowns, foremost among them being the danger of the spacecraft flooding and sinking. This happened to
capsule malfunctioned and blew prematurely. The capsule sank and Grissom nearly drowned.
Another problem associated with splashdown is that if the capsule comes down far from any recovery forces the crew are exposed to greater danger. As an example, Scott Carpenter in
overshot the assigned landing zone by 400 km. These recovery operation mishaps can be mitigated by placing several vessels on standby in several different locations, but this is quite an expensive option.
| Spacecraft |
Landing Date |
Coordinates |
Recovery Ship |
Miss Distance (kilometres) |
Freedom 7Mercury-Redstone 3 was the first manned space mission of the United States. Astronaut Alan Shepard piloted a 15-minute Project Mercury suborbital flight in the Freedom 7 spacecraft on May 5, 1961 to become the first American in space, three weeks after the Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin had carried...
|
May 5, 1961 |
27°13.7′N 75°53′W |
USS Lake Champlain (CVS-39)USS Lake Champlain was one of 24 s completed during or shortly after World War II for the United States Navy. She was the second US Navy ship to bear the name, and was named for the Battle of Lake Champlain in the War of 1812....
|
5.6 |
Liberty Bell 7Mercury-Redstone 4 was the second United States manned space mission, launched on July 21, 1961. The Mercury program suborbital flight used a Redstone rocket. The spacecraft was named Liberty Bell 7 piloted by astronaut Virgil I. "Gus" Grissom. It reached an altitude of more than 118.26 mi ...
|
July 21, 1961 |
27°32′N 75°44′W |
USS Randolph (CVS-15)USS Randolph was one of 24 s built during World War II for the United States Navy. The second US Navy ship to bear the name, she was named for Peyton Randolph, president of the First Continental Congress. Randolph was commissioned in October 1944, and served in several campaigns in the Pacific...
|
9.3 |
Friendship 7Mercury-Atlas 6 was a human spaceflight mission conducted by NASA, the space agency of the United States. As part of Project Mercury, MA-6 was the successful first attempt by NASA to place an astronaut into orbit. The MA-6 mission was launched February 20, 1962. It made three orbits of the Earth,...
|
February 20, 1962 |
21°26′N 68°41′W |
(USS Randolph (CVS-15)**USS Randolph was one of 24 s built during World War II for the United States Navy. The second US Navy ship to bear the name, she was named for Peyton Randolph, president of the First Continental Congress. Randolph was commissioned in October 1944, and served in several campaigns in the Pacific...
) |
74 |
Aurora 7-Backup crew:-Crew notes:The original prime crew for Mercury Atlas-7 was to have been Deke Slayton, with Schirra as his back-up. However Slayton was removed from all flight crew availability after the discovery of cardiac arrhythmia during a training run in the g-loading centrifuge...
|
May 24, 1962 |
19°27′N 63°59′W |
(USS Intrepid (CVS-11)**USS Intrepid , also known as The Fighting "I", is one of 24 s built during World War II for the United States Navy. She is the fourth US Navy ship to bear the name. Commissioned in August 1943, Intrepid participated in several campaigns in the Pacific Theater of Operations, most notably the Battle...
) |
400 |
Sigma 7Mercury-Atlas 8 was an early manned space mission, part of NASA's Mercury program. Astronaut Walter M. Schirra, Jr., orbited the Earth six times in the Sigma 7 spacecraft on October 3, 1962, in a nine-hour flight focused mainly on technical evaluation rather than on scientific experimentation...
|
October 3, 1962 |
32°06′N 174°28′W |
USS Kearsarge (CVS-33)USS Kearsarge was one of 24 s completed during or shortly after World War II for the United States Navy. The ship was the third US Navy ship to bear the name, and was named for a Civil War-era steam sloop. Kearsarge was commissioned in March 1946...
|
7.4 |
Faith 7Mercury-Atlas 9 was the final manned space mission of the U.S. Mercury program, launched on May 15, 1963 from Launch Complex 14 at Cape Canaveral, Florida. The spacecraft, named Faith 7, completed 22 Earth orbits before splashing down in the Pacific Ocean, piloted by astronaut Gordon Cooper, then...
|
May 16, 1963 |
27°20′N 176°26′W |
USS Kearsarge (CVS-33)USS Kearsarge was one of 24 s completed during or shortly after World War II for the United States Navy. The ship was the third US Navy ship to bear the name, and was named for a Civil War-era steam sloop. Kearsarge was commissioned in March 1946...
|
8.1 |
Gemini 3Gemini 3 was the first manned mission in NASA's Gemini program, the second American manned space program. On March 23, 1965, the spacecraft, nicknamed The Molly Brown, performed the seventh manned US spaceflight, and the 17th manned spaceflight overall...
|
March 23, 1965 |
22°26′N 70°51′W |
USS Intrepid (CVS-11)USS Intrepid , also known as The Fighting "I", is one of 24 s built during World War II for the United States Navy. She is the fourth US Navy ship to bear the name. Commissioned in August 1943, Intrepid participated in several campaigns in the Pacific Theater of Operations, most notably the Battle...
|
111 |
Gemini 4Gemini 4 was the second manned space flight in NASA's Project Gemini, occurring in June 1965. It was the tenth manned American spaceflight . Astronauts James McDivitt and Edward H. White, II circled the Earth 66 times in four days, making it the first US flight to approach the five-day flight of...
|
June 7, 1965 |
27°44′N 74°11′W |
USS Wasp (CVS-18)USS Wasp was one of 24 s built during World War II for the United States Navy. The ship, the ninth US Navy ship to bear the name, was originally named Oriskany, but was renamed while under construction in honor of the previous , which was sunk 15 September 1942...
|
81 |
Gemini 5Gemini 5 was a 1965 manned spaceflight in NASA's Gemini program. It was the third manned Gemini flight, the 11th manned American flight and the 19th spaceflight of all time...
|
August 29, 1965 |
29°44′N 69°45′W |
USS Lake Champlain (CVS 39)USS Lake Champlain was one of 24 s completed during or shortly after World War II for the United States Navy. She was the second US Navy ship to bear the name, and was named for the Battle of Lake Champlain in the War of 1812....
|
270 |
Gemini 7Gemini 7 was a 1965 manned spaceflight in NASA's Gemini program. It was the 4th manned Gemini flight, the 12th manned American flight and the 20th spaceflight of all time . The crew of Frank F. Borman, II and James A...
|
December 18, 1965 |
25°25′N 70°07′W |
USS Wasp (CVS-18)USS Wasp was one of 24 s built during World War II for the United States Navy. The ship, the ninth US Navy ship to bear the name, was originally named Oriskany, but was renamed while under construction in honor of the previous , which was sunk 15 September 1942...
|
12 |
Gemini 6A-Backup crew:-Mission parameters:* Mass: * Perigee: * Apogee: * Inclination: 28.97°* Period: 88.7 min-Stationkeeping with GT-7:* Start: December 15, 1965 19:33 UTC* End: December 16, 1965 00:52 UTC-Objectives:...
|
December 16, 1965 |
23°35′N 67°50′W |
USS Wasp (CVS-18)USS Wasp was one of 24 s built during World War II for the United States Navy. The ship, the ninth US Navy ship to bear the name, was originally named Oriskany, but was renamed while under construction in honor of the previous , which was sunk 15 September 1942...
|
13 |
Gemini 8-Backup crew:-Mission parameters:* Mass: * Perigee: * Apogee: * Inclination: 28.91°* Period: 88.83 min-Objectives:Gemini VIII had two major objectives, of which it achieved one...
|
March 17, 1966 |
25°14′N 136°0′E |
(USS Boxer (LPH-4)**USS Boxer was one of 24 s built during World War II for the United States Navy. She was the fifth US Navy ship to bear the name, and was named for a British ship captured by the Americans during the War of 1812...
) |
2 |
Gemini 9A- Backup crew :- Original primary crew :- Mission parameters :* Mass: * Perigee: * Apogee: * Inclination: 28.91°* Period: 88.78 min- 1st rendezvous :* June 3, 1966 - 17:45 - 18:00 UTC- Spacewalk :* Cernan...
|
June 6, 1966 |
27°52′N 75°0′W |
USS Wasp (CVS-18)USS Wasp was one of 24 s built during World War II for the United States Navy. The ship, the ninth US Navy ship to bear the name, was originally named Oriskany, but was renamed while under construction in honor of the previous , which was sunk 15 September 1942...
|
0.7 |
Gemini 10-Backup crew:-Mission parameters:*Mass: *Perigee: *Apogee: *Inclination: 28.87°*Period: 88.79 min-Docking:*Docked: July 19, 1966 - 04:15:00 UTC*Undocked: July 20, 1966 - 19:00:00 UTC-Space walk:...
|
July 21, 1966 |
26°45′N 71°57′W |
|
6 |
Gemini 11Gemini 11 was the ninth manned spaceflight mission of NASA's Project Gemini, which flew from September 12 to 15, 1966. It was the 17th manned American flight and the 25th spaceflight to that time . Astronauts Charles "Pete" Conrad, Jr. and Richard F. Gordon, Jr...
|
September 15, 1966 |
24°15′N 70°0′W |
|
5 |
Gemini 12-Backup crew:-Mission parameters:*Mass: *Perigee: *Apogee: *Inclination: 28.87°*Period: 88.87 min-Docking:*Docked: November 12, 1966 - 01:06:00 UTC*Undocked: November 13, 1966 - 20:18:00 UTC-Space walk:...
|
November 15, 1966 |
24°35′N 69°57′W |
USS Wasp (CVS-18)USS Wasp was one of 24 s built during World War II for the United States Navy. The ship, the ninth US Navy ship to bear the name, was originally named Oriskany, but was renamed while under construction in honor of the previous , which was sunk 15 September 1942...
|
5 |
Apollo 7Apollo 7 was the first manned mission in the American Apollo space program, and the first manned US space flight after a cabin fire killed the crew of what was to have been the first manned mission, AS-204 , during a launch pad test in 1967...
|
October 22, 1968 |
27°32′N 64°04′W |
USS Essex (CVS-9)USS Essex was an aircraft carrier, the lead ship of the 24-ship built for the United States Navy during World War II. She was the fourth US Navy ship to bear the name. Commissioned in December 1942, Essex participated in several campaigns in the Pacific Theater of Operations, earning the...
|
3 |
Apollo 8Apollo 8, the second manned mission in the American Apollo space program, was the first human spaceflight to leave Earth orbit; the first to be captured by and escape from the gravitational field of another celestial body; and the first crewed voyage to return to Earth from another celestial...
|
December 27, 1968 |
8°7.5′N 165°1.2′W |
USS Yorktown (CVS-10)USS Yorktown is one of 24 s built during World War II for the United States Navy. She is named after the Battle of Yorktown of the American Revolutionary War, and is the fourth U.S. Navy ship to bear the name...
|
2 |
Apollo 9Apollo 9, the third manned mission in the American Apollo space program, was the first flight of the Command/Service Module with the Lunar Module...
|
March 13, 1969 |
23°15′N 67°56′W |
|
5 |
Apollo 10Apollo 10 was the fourth manned mission in the American Apollo space program. It was an F type mission—its purpose was to be a "dry run" for the Apollo 11 mission, testing all of the procedures and components of a Moon landing without actually landing on the Moon itself. The mission included the...
|
May 26, 1969 |
15°2′S 164°39′W |
USS Princeton (CVS-37)USS Princeton was one of 24 s built during and shortly after World War II for the United States Navy. The ship was the fifth US Navy ship to bear the name, and was named for the Revolutionary War Battle of Princeton...
|
2.4 |
Apollo 11In early 1969, Bill Anders accepted a job with the National Space Council effective in August 1969 and announced his retirement as an astronaut. At that point Ken Mattingly was moved from the support crew into parallel training with Anders as backup Command Module Pilot in case Apollo 11 was...
|
July 24, 1969 |
13°19′N 169°9′W |
USS Hornet (CVS-12) USS Hornet is a United States Navy aircraft carrier of the Essex class. Construction started in August 1942; she was originally named , but was renamed in honor of the , which was lost in October 1942, becoming the eighth ship to bear the name.Hornet was commissioned in November 1943, and after...
|
3.13 |
Apollo 12Apollo 12 was the sixth manned flight in the American Apollo program and the second to land on the Moon . It was launched on November 14, 1969 from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida, four months after Apollo 11. Mission commander Charles "Pete" Conrad and Lunar Module Pilot Alan L...
|
November 24, 1969 |
15°47′S 165°9′W |
USS Hornet (CVS-12) USS Hornet is a United States Navy aircraft carrier of the Essex class. Construction started in August 1942; she was originally named , but was renamed in honor of the , which was lost in October 1942, becoming the eighth ship to bear the name.Hornet was commissioned in November 1943, and after...
|
3.7 |
Apollo 13Apollo 13 was the seventh manned mission in the American Apollo space program and the third intended to land on the Moon. The craft was launched on April 11, 1970, at 13:13 CST. The landing was aborted after an oxygen tank exploded two days later, crippling the service module upon which the Command...
|
April 17, 1970 |
21°38′S 165°22′W |
|
1.85 |
Apollo 14Apollo 14 was the eighth manned mission in the American Apollo program, and the third to land on the Moon. It was the last of the "H missions", targeted landings with two-day stays on the Moon with two lunar EVAs, or moonwalks....
|
February 9, 1971 |
27°1′S 172°39′W |
|
1.1 |
Apollo 15Apollo 15 was the ninth manned mission in the American Apollo space program, the fourth to land on the Moon and the eighth successful manned mission. It was the first of what were termed "J missions", long duration stays on the Moon with a greater focus on science than had been possible on previous...
|
August 7, 1971 |
26°7′N 158°8′W |
|
1.85 |
Apollo 16Young and Duke served as the backup crew for Apollo 13; Mattingly was slated to be the Apollo 13 command module pilot until being pulled from the mission due to his exposure to rubella through Duke.-Backup crew:...
|
April 27, 1972 |
0°43′S 156°13′W |
USS Ticonderoga (CVS-14)USS Ticonderoga was one of 24 s built during World War II for the United States Navy. The ship was the fourth US Navy ship to bear the name, and was named for historic Fort Ticonderoga, which played a role in the American Revolutionary War...
|
0.55 |
Apollo 17Apollo 17 was the eleventh and final manned mission in the American Apollo space program. Launched at 12:33 a.m. EST on December 7, 1972, with a three-member crew consisting of Commander Eugene Cernan, Command Module Pilot Ronald Evans, and Lunar Module Pilot Harrison Schmitt, Apollo 17 remains the...
|
December 19, 1972 |
17°53′S 166°7′W |
USS Ticonderoga (CVS-14)USS Ticonderoga was one of 24 s built during World War II for the United States Navy. The ship was the fourth US Navy ship to bear the name, and was named for historic Fort Ticonderoga, which played a role in the American Revolutionary War...
|
1.85 |
| Skylab 2 -Backup crew:-Support crew:*Robert L. Crippen*Richard H. Truly*Henry W. Hartsfield, Jr*William E. Thornton-Mission parameters:*Mass: 19,979 kg*Maximum Altitude: 440 km*Distance: 18,536,730.9 km...
|
June 22, 1973 |
24°45′N 127°2′W |
USS Ticonderoga (CVS-14)USS Ticonderoga was one of 24 s built during World War II for the United States Navy. The ship was the fourth US Navy ship to bear the name, and was named for historic Fort Ticonderoga, which played a role in the American Revolutionary War...
|
|
Skylab 3Skylab 3 was the second manned mission to Skylab. The Skylab 3 mission started July 28, 1973, with the launch of three astronauts on the Saturn IB rocket, and lasted 59 days, 11 hours and 9 minutes...
|
September 25, 1973 |
30°47′N 120°29′W |
|
|
Skylab 4Skylab 4 was the fourth Skylab mission and placed the third and final crew on board the space station. The mission started November 16, 1973 with the launch of three astronauts on a Saturn IB rocket, and lasted 84 days, 1 hour and 16 minutes...
|
February 8, 1974 |
31°18′N 119°48′W |
|
|
| ASTP Apollo |
July 24, 1975 |
22°N 163°W |
|
1.3 |
| Soyuz 23 Soyuz 23 was a 1976 Soviet manned space flight, the second to the Salyut 5 space station. Cosmonauts Vyacheslav Zudov and Valery Rozhdestvensky arrived at the station, but an equipment malfunction did not allow docking and the mission had to be aborted....
|
October 16, 1976 |
Lake TengizTengiz Lake is a saline lake in north-central part of Kazakhstan. Lake Tengiz is an important wetland site for birds. It ia a part of a Ramsar wetland site of international importance, "Tengiz-Korgalzhyn Lake System". 318 species of birds have been recorded at Lake Tengiz, 22 of which are endangered...
|
Helicopter Mi-8The Mil Mi-8 is a medium twin-turbine transport helicopter that can also act as a gunship. The Mi-8 is the world's most-produced helicopter, and is used by over 50 countries. Russia is the largest operator of the Mi-8/Mi-17 helicopter....
|
|
- |
| Spacecraft |
Landing Date |
Coordinates |
Recovery Ship |
Miss Distance |
| Jupiter AM-18 |
May 28, 1959 |
48 to 96 km N Antigua Is |
USS Kiowa (ATF-72) |
16 km |
Mercury-Big JoeBig Joe 1 launched an unmanned boilerplate Mercury capsule from Cape Canaveral, Florida on September 9, 1959. The objective of the Big Joe program was to test the Mercury spacecraft ablating heat shield...
|
September 9, 1959 |
2,407 km SE Cape Canaveral |
|
925 km |
Mercury-Little Joe 2The Little Joe 2 was a test of the Mercury space capsule. It was the first American animal spaceflight, carrying the Rhesus monkey Sam close to the edge of space. He was sent to test the space equipment and the adverse effects of space on humans.The flight was launched December 4, 1959, at 11:15...
|
December 4, 1959 |
319 km SE Wallops Is, VA |
|
? km |
Mercury-Redstone 1AMercury-Redstone 1A was launched on December 19, 1960 from LC-5 at Cape Canaveral, Florida. The mission objectives of this unmanned suborbital flight were to qualify the spacecraft for space flight and qualify the system for an upcoming primate suborbital flight. The spacecraft tested its...
|
December 19, 1960 |
378.2 km SE Cape Canaveral |
|
12.9 km |
Mercury-Redstone 2Mercury-Redstone 2 was an American space mission, launched at 16:55 UTC on January 31, 1961 from LC-5 at Cape Canaveral, Florida. Mercury spacecraft No...
|
January 31, 1961 |
675.9 km SE Cape Canaveral |
http://www.homestead.com/USSDONNERLSD20/index.html |
209.2 km |
Mercury-Atlas 2Mercury-Atlas 2 was launched unmanned on February 21, 1961 at 14:10 UTC, from Launch Complex 14 at Cape Canaveral, Florida. Test objectives for this flight were concerned with the ability of the spacecraft to withstand reentry under the temperature-critical abort conditions and with the capability...
|
February 21, 1961 |
2293.3 km SE Cape Canaveral |
http://www.homestead.com/USSDONNERLSD20/index.html |
20.9 km |
| Mercury-Atlas 4 Mercury-Atlas 4 was an unmanned spaceflight of the Mercury program. It was launched on September 13, 1961 at 14:09 UTC from Launch Complex 14 at Cape Canaveral, Florida. A Crewman Simulator instrument package was aboard. The craft orbited the Earth once....
|
September 13, 1961 |
257.5 km E of Bermuda |
|
64.4 km |
Mercury-Atlas 5Mercury-Atlas 5 was an American unmanned spaceflight of the Mercury program. It was launched on November 29, 1961 with Enos the Chimp, a chimpanzee, aboard...
|
November 29, 1961 |
804.7 km SE of Bermuda |
|
? km |
Gemini 2Gemini 2 was the second spaceflight of the American human spaceflight program Project Gemini. Gemini 2, like Gemini 1, was an unmanned mission intended as a test flight of the Gemini spacecraft. Unlike Gemini 1, which was placed into orbit, Gemini 2 made a suborbital flight, primarily intended to...
|
January 19, 1965 |
16°33.9′N 49°46.27′W 3423.1 km downrange from KSC |
USS Lake Champlain (CVS-39)USS Lake Champlain was one of 24 s completed during or shortly after World War II for the United States Navy. She was the second US Navy ship to bear the name, and was named for the Battle of Lake Champlain in the War of 1812....
|
38.6 km |
Apollo 201AS-201 , flown February 26, 1966, was the first unmanned test flight of an entire production Block I Apollo Command/Service Module and the Saturn IB launch vehicle. The spacecraft consisted of the second Block I command module and the first Block I service module...
|
February 26, 1966 |
8.18°S 11.15°W 8,472 km downrange from KSC |
USS Boxer (LPH-4)USS Boxer was one of 24 s built during World War II for the United States Navy. She was the fifth US Navy ship to bear the name, and was named for a British ship captured by the Americans during the War of 1812...
|
? km |
Apollo 202AS-202 was the second unmanned, suborbital test flight of a production Block I Apollo Command/Service Module launched with the Saturn IB launch vehicle. It launched August 25, 1966 and was the first flight which included the spacecraft Guidance and Navigation Control system and fuel cells...
|
August 25, 1966 |
16.12°N 168.9°E 804.7 km southwest of Wake Island |
USS Hornet (CVS-12) USS Hornet is a United States Navy aircraft carrier of the Essex class. Construction started in August 1942; she was originally named , but was renamed in honor of the , which was lost in October 1942, becoming the eighth ship to bear the name.Hornet was commissioned in November 1943, and after...
|
? km |
| Gemini 2-MOL The Manned Orbiting Laboratory , originally referred to as the Manned Orbital Laboratory, was part of the United States Air Force's manned spaceflight program, a successor to the cancelled Boeing X-20 Dyna-Soar military reconnaissance space plane project...
|
November 3, 1966 |
8,149.7 km SE KSC near Ascension Is. |
|
11.26 km |
Apollo 4Apollo 4, , was the first unmanned test flight of the Saturn V launch vehicle, which was ultimately used by the Apollo program to send the first men to the Moon...
|
November 9, 1967 |
30.1°N 172.53°W |
USS Bennington (CVS-20)USS Bennington was one of 24 s built during World War II for the United States Navy. The ship was the second US Navy ship to bear the name, and was named for the Revolutionary War Battle of Bennington...
|
16 km |
Apollo 6Apollo 6, launched on April 4, 1968, was the Apollo program's second and last A type mission—unmanned test flight of its Saturn V launch vehicle. It was intended to demonstrate full lunar injection capability of the Saturn V, and the capability of the Command Module's heat shield to withstand a...
|
April 4, 1968 |
27°40′N 157°59′W |
|
? km |
| Zond 5 Zond 5, a formal member of the Soviet Zond program and unmanned version of Soyuz 7K-L1 manned moon-flyby spacecraft, was launched from a Tyazheliy Sputnik in Earth parking orbit to make scientific studies during a lunar flyby and to return to Earth....
|
September 21, 1968 |
32.63°S 65.55°E |
USSR recovery naval vessel Borovichy & Vasiliy Golovin |
105 km |
| Zond 8 |
October 27, 1970 |
730 km SE of the Chagos Islands, Indian OceanThe Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
|
USSR recovery ship Taman |
24 km |
| COTS Demo Flight 1 |
December 8, 2010 |
800 km west of Baja California, MexicoThe United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, Pacific OceanThe Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
|
? |
0.8 km |