Space exploration is full of mystery and big dreams, but it is also full of extreme, life threatening dangers. Over the decades, NASA has sent many brave men and women into the dark unknown of space. While most space journeys were successful, a few turned into terrifying nightmares where astronauts almost lost their lives high above Earth. The most famous life or death crisis was Apollo 13 in April 1970.
Astronauts Jim Lovell, Jack Swigert, and Fred Haise were flying toward the Moon when a sudden oxygen tank explosion destroyed their main power, water, and air supply. Left with minimal resources, the crew was forced to use their tiny lunar landing module as a makeshift lifeboat. Facing freezing cold temperatures, dehydrated conditions, and poisonous gas build up, the crew collaborated with sharp engineers at Mission Control to repair their system. Miraculously, they navigated safely back to Earth.
Another terrifying incident occurred in 1966 during the Gemini 8 mission. Astronaut Neil Armstrong and his teammate David Scott were attempting to dock two spacecraft in orbit when a broken maneuvering thruster rocket got stuck in the open position. Their craft began spinning uncontrollably at a dizzying speed of one rotation per second. The dangerous spinning rapidly pushed the astronauts toward total blackness and death. Showing extraordinary presence of mind, Armstrong turned off the main thrusters and activated emergency landing rockets to halt the deadly spin, ultimately saving both their lives. These real life incidents show us that space travel is extremely risky. It demands immense courage, instant decision making, and seamless teamwork. Thanks to the bravery of astronauts and brilliant minds on the ground, these close calls ended as miraculous stories of human survival.
