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Who was lost in space in real life?

Published in Space Exploration 1 min read

Georgy Dobrovolsky, Viktor Patsayev, and Vladislav Volkov, Soviet cosmonauts, are the only people who died in space (above the Kármán line) during a mission.

Details of the Soyuz 11 Tragedy

In 1971, the Soyuz 11 mission experienced a catastrophic failure during its return to Earth. The three cosmonauts aboard perished due to rapid depressurization of the spacecraft as it undocked from the Salyut 1 space station.

  • Mission: Soyuz 11
  • Date: 1971
  • Cosmonauts: Georgy Dobrovolsky, Viktor Patsayev, and Vladislav Volkov
  • Cause of Death: Rapid depressurization of the spacecraft during re-entry. A valve failed, causing the capsule to lose pressure.

Prior to this incident and since then, there have been no other deaths recorded as occurring in space according to the generally accepted definition (above the Kármán line). There have tragically been deaths during ground-based training and accidents occurring on the launchpad or during atmospheric flight.