





























See Also
See Again
© Getty Images
0 / 30 Fotos
The Challenger disaster - The Challenger disaster was one of the biggest tragedies in the history of spaceflight. The NASA mission took place in January 1986, with seven astronauts members on board.
© Getty Images
1 / 30 Fotos
The Challenger disaster - Just a minute after the space shuttle took off, there was a malfunction and a fire spread to the rocket itself.
© Getty Images
2 / 30 Fotos
The Challenger disaster - The shuttle eventually exploded and all seven crew members were killed. NASA's space shuttle program was subsequently suspended, albeit temporarily.
© Public Domain
3 / 30 Fotos
Lightning strikes Apollo 12 - Apollo 12 was a mission marred by accidents, but thankfully it didn’t end in complete disaster. During launch, the rocket was hit with not one, but two lighting strikes.
© Public Domain
4 / 30 Fotos
Lightning strikes Apollo 12 - The crew, comprised of Charles Conrad, Alan L. Bean, and Richard F. Gordon, still made it to the moon, and took some nice photos too.
© Getty Images
5 / 30 Fotos
Lightning strikes Apollo 12 - When they returned and “splashed down,” there was another accident. Bean was hit with a camera, suffering concussion. Luckily, mission commander Conrad bandaged up the wound in no time.
© Getty Images
6 / 30 Fotos
The Columbia disaster - This disaster took place in 2003, and mirrored the tragic events surrounding the earlier Challenger mission.
© Getty Images
7 / 30 Fotos
The Columbia disaster - Upon reentering the Earth’s atmosphere, the Columbia disintegrated and all seven crew members were tragically killed.
© Getty Images
8 / 30 Fotos
The Columbia disaster
- The crew may have died, but an experiment they performed survived. A group of worms were on board the Columbia, and they amazingly withstood reentry.
© Getty Images
9 / 30 Fotos
A leak on ISS Expedition 36 - In July 2013, Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano had a tough time aboard the ISS Expedition 36.
© Reuters
10 / 30 Fotos
A leak on ISS Expedition 36 - During a spacewalk, Parmitano’s helmet began filling up with liquid. It sloshed around the helmet, making it impossible for the astronaut to communicate.
© Reuters
11 / 30 Fotos
A leak on ISS Expedition 36 - Parmitano couldn’t clean up the mess by drinking it, so he kept his cool. The spacewalk was cancelled, and the astronaut made it out alive, despite needing a fresh towel.
© Reuters
12 / 30 Fotos
Tragedy on Soyuz 11
- Soyuz 11 was another disaster which hit the Soviet space program. The mission was launched in 1971, with cosmonauts Georgy Dobrovolsky, Vladislav Volkov, and Viktor Patsayev.
© Getty Images
13 / 30 Fotos
Tragedy on Soyuz 11 - After staying three weeks aboard the Salyut 1 space station, the trio undocked and intended to journey home. They wouldn’t make it.
© Getty Images
14 / 30 Fotos
Tragedy on Soyuz 11
- A cabin vent valve opened by accident, and all three crew members were killed. They are the only people to ever die in space.
© Getty Images
15 / 30 Fotos
A gas leak on Apollo-Soyuz - In 1975, history was made. For the first time, America and the Soviet Union teamed up for the Apollo-Soyuz mission.
© Public Domain
16 / 30 Fotos
A gas leak on Apollo-Soyuz - The mission was very successful. However, disaster struck upon reentry. There was a poisonous gas leak in the American Apollo cabin. All three astronauts suffered, but were healed within weeks.
© Public Domain
17 / 30 Fotos
The plight of Michael J. Adams - Michael J. Adams didn’t have much to worry about before heading on this mission on November 15, 1967. This was, after all, his seventh flight.
© Public Domain
18 / 30 Fotos
The plight of Michael J. Adams
- But on this particular day in the mining town of Johannesburg, California, his aircraft broke apart just minutes after launch, killing Adams.
© Getty Images
19 / 30 Fotos
The plight of Michael J. Adams
- While descending, his aircraft entered a violent spin. Its design did not allow it to withstand such force, and it ultimately broke up 10 minutes and 35 seconds after launch, with Adams dying as a result.
© Public Domain
20 / 30 Fotos
Disaster on Soyuz 1
- Vladimir Komarov was the first cosmonaut to go to space twice. His second time, aboard the Soyuz 1 spacecraft, ended in disaster.
© Getty Images
21 / 30 Fotos
Disaster on Soyuz 1 - The Soyuz 1 mission took place in April 1967, and Komarov intended to reach the Moon’s surface.
© Public Domain
22 / 30 Fotos
Disaster on Soyuz 1 - However, the spacecraft had some dramatic malfunctions. Komarov planned to return to Earth, but the spacecraft’s parachutes didn’t work. Komarov died, making him the first fatality in spaceflight.
© Public Domain
23 / 30 Fotos
Gym injuries on Mir - Staying healthy is super important when exploring space. But back in 1995, the Mir-18 space station saw an accident related to exercise equipment.
© Getty Images
24 / 30 Fotos
Gym injuries on Mir - Norman Thagard, an American astronaut, was doing knee bends aboard the space station. One of the straps snapped, and Thagard got hit in the eye.
© Reuters
25 / 30 Fotos
Gym injuries on Mir - Thagard was hit bad, and looking at lights proved to be painful. Luckily, there were some steroid eye drops on board, and Thagard made a full recovery.
© Reuters
26 / 30 Fotos
A close shave for Grissom - This was America’s second human spaceflight, which took place in July 1961. Gus Grissom was the only crew member.
© Getty Images
27 / 30 Fotos
A close shave for Grissom - The mission was a success, with a spaceflight lasting 15 minutes. Yet disaster struck at splashdown, when the hatch blew off and water started filling up the spacecraft.
© Public Domain
28 / 30 Fotos
A close shave for Grissom
- Grissom could have drowned, were it not for a US Navy helicopter, which rescued him in time. Sadly, however, in 1967 he died amongst fellow astronauts Ed White and Roger B. Chaffee during a pre-launch test for the Apollo 1 mission. See also: History's worst submarine disasters
© Public Domain
29 / 30 Fotos
© Getty Images
0 / 30 Fotos
The Challenger disaster - The Challenger disaster was one of the biggest tragedies in the history of spaceflight. The NASA mission took place in January 1986, with seven astronauts members on board.
© Getty Images
1 / 30 Fotos
The Challenger disaster - Just a minute after the space shuttle took off, there was a malfunction and a fire spread to the rocket itself.
© Getty Images
2 / 30 Fotos
The Challenger disaster - The shuttle eventually exploded and all seven crew members were killed. NASA's space shuttle program was subsequently suspended, albeit temporarily.
© Public Domain
3 / 30 Fotos
Lightning strikes Apollo 12 - Apollo 12 was a mission marred by accidents, but thankfully it didn’t end in complete disaster. During launch, the rocket was hit with not one, but two lighting strikes.
© Public Domain
4 / 30 Fotos
Lightning strikes Apollo 12 - The crew, comprised of Charles Conrad, Alan L. Bean, and Richard F. Gordon, still made it to the moon, and took some nice photos too.
© Getty Images
5 / 30 Fotos
Lightning strikes Apollo 12 - When they returned and “splashed down,” there was another accident. Bean was hit with a camera, suffering concussion. Luckily, mission commander Conrad bandaged up the wound in no time.
© Getty Images
6 / 30 Fotos
The Columbia disaster - This disaster took place in 2003, and mirrored the tragic events surrounding the earlier Challenger mission.
© Getty Images
7 / 30 Fotos
The Columbia disaster - Upon reentering the Earth’s atmosphere, the Columbia disintegrated and all seven crew members were tragically killed.
© Getty Images
8 / 30 Fotos
The Columbia disaster
- The crew may have died, but an experiment they performed survived. A group of worms were on board the Columbia, and they amazingly withstood reentry.
© Getty Images
9 / 30 Fotos
A leak on ISS Expedition 36 - In July 2013, Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano had a tough time aboard the ISS Expedition 36.
© Reuters
10 / 30 Fotos
A leak on ISS Expedition 36 - During a spacewalk, Parmitano’s helmet began filling up with liquid. It sloshed around the helmet, making it impossible for the astronaut to communicate.
© Reuters
11 / 30 Fotos
A leak on ISS Expedition 36 - Parmitano couldn’t clean up the mess by drinking it, so he kept his cool. The spacewalk was cancelled, and the astronaut made it out alive, despite needing a fresh towel.
© Reuters
12 / 30 Fotos
Tragedy on Soyuz 11
- Soyuz 11 was another disaster which hit the Soviet space program. The mission was launched in 1971, with cosmonauts Georgy Dobrovolsky, Vladislav Volkov, and Viktor Patsayev.
© Getty Images
13 / 30 Fotos
Tragedy on Soyuz 11 - After staying three weeks aboard the Salyut 1 space station, the trio undocked and intended to journey home. They wouldn’t make it.
© Getty Images
14 / 30 Fotos
Tragedy on Soyuz 11
- A cabin vent valve opened by accident, and all three crew members were killed. They are the only people to ever die in space.
© Getty Images
15 / 30 Fotos
A gas leak on Apollo-Soyuz - In 1975, history was made. For the first time, America and the Soviet Union teamed up for the Apollo-Soyuz mission.
© Public Domain
16 / 30 Fotos
A gas leak on Apollo-Soyuz - The mission was very successful. However, disaster struck upon reentry. There was a poisonous gas leak in the American Apollo cabin. All three astronauts suffered, but were healed within weeks.
© Public Domain
17 / 30 Fotos
The plight of Michael J. Adams - Michael J. Adams didn’t have much to worry about before heading on this mission on November 15, 1967. This was, after all, his seventh flight.
© Public Domain
18 / 30 Fotos
The plight of Michael J. Adams
- But on this particular day in the mining town of Johannesburg, California, his aircraft broke apart just minutes after launch, killing Adams.
© Getty Images
19 / 30 Fotos
The plight of Michael J. Adams
- While descending, his aircraft entered a violent spin. Its design did not allow it to withstand such force, and it ultimately broke up 10 minutes and 35 seconds after launch, with Adams dying as a result.
© Public Domain
20 / 30 Fotos
Disaster on Soyuz 1
- Vladimir Komarov was the first cosmonaut to go to space twice. His second time, aboard the Soyuz 1 spacecraft, ended in disaster.
© Getty Images
21 / 30 Fotos
Disaster on Soyuz 1 - The Soyuz 1 mission took place in April 1967, and Komarov intended to reach the Moon’s surface.
© Public Domain
22 / 30 Fotos
Disaster on Soyuz 1 - However, the spacecraft had some dramatic malfunctions. Komarov planned to return to Earth, but the spacecraft’s parachutes didn’t work. Komarov died, making him the first fatality in spaceflight.
© Public Domain
23 / 30 Fotos
Gym injuries on Mir - Staying healthy is super important when exploring space. But back in 1995, the Mir-18 space station saw an accident related to exercise equipment.
© Getty Images
24 / 30 Fotos
Gym injuries on Mir - Norman Thagard, an American astronaut, was doing knee bends aboard the space station. One of the straps snapped, and Thagard got hit in the eye.
© Reuters
25 / 30 Fotos
Gym injuries on Mir - Thagard was hit bad, and looking at lights proved to be painful. Luckily, there were some steroid eye drops on board, and Thagard made a full recovery.
© Reuters
26 / 30 Fotos
A close shave for Grissom - This was America’s second human spaceflight, which took place in July 1961. Gus Grissom was the only crew member.
© Getty Images
27 / 30 Fotos
A close shave for Grissom - The mission was a success, with a spaceflight lasting 15 minutes. Yet disaster struck at splashdown, when the hatch blew off and water started filling up the spacecraft.
© Public Domain
28 / 30 Fotos
A close shave for Grissom
- Grissom could have drowned, were it not for a US Navy helicopter, which rescued him in time. Sadly, however, in 1967 he died amongst fellow astronauts Ed White and Roger B. Chaffee during a pre-launch test for the Apollo 1 mission. See also: History's worst submarine disasters
© Public Domain
29 / 30 Fotos
The worst disasters to occur in space
Space exploration is fraught with danger
© Getty Images
Journeying into space is pretty dangerous stuff. Relatively few missions sent to explore space over the years have been crewed, and for good reason. The risk to human (and animal) life is always high, even as technology in this field advances rapidly.
In one of the scariest disasters in recent years, two US astronauts who were meant to spend eight days traveling to and from the International Space Station (ISS) have been stuck there for over two months. What's more, they may not be able to get home until 2025. This is due to the myriad of technical issues that have left their craft, the new Boeing Starliner capsule, unsafe to use. Astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams were the first crew to fly the ship on its maiden voyage—an unlucky predicament, as it turns out. The mission launch occurred on June 5, 2024, and the Starliner made it to the ISS safely. However, several technical issues came to light that made it impossible for Wilmore and Williams to return to Earth on the scheduled date. What was supposed to be eight days stretched into eight weeks as Boeing and NASA attempted to resolve the issues. In July, Boeing revealed that four of Starliner's jet fuels had failed, the thrusters were malfunctioning, and there were helium leaks.
The astronauts have been at the ISS for over 180 days, and the Starliner has already returned to Earth without them due to safety concerns. A SpaceX Crew Dragon flight is now scheduled to bring them back to Earth in February.
While the world waits to see when and how these astronauts will make it back to Earth, let's look back at some of the worst disasters in the history of space travel to remember what is at stake.
RECOMMENDED FOR YOU




































MOST READ
- Last Hour
- Last Day
- Last Week