# Why did cosmonauts land on land while astronauts landed on water? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\ **Created:** [June 11, 2012, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-cosmonauts-land-on-land-while-astronauts-landed-on-water/624819 "2012-06-11T15:19:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![TonyRV2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/858c86/32.png) [@TonyRV2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TonyRV2)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2012, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-cosmonauts-land-on-land-while-astronauts-landed-on-water/624819/1 "2012-06-11T15:19:42Z")
In this article Cecil states that cosmonauts were sometimes stranded for a few days after landing. What prevented them from opening the capsule and say, hitchhike home? ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2012, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-cosmonauts-land-on-land-while-astronauts-landed-on-water/624819/2 "2012-06-11T15:25:31Z")
No roads? Setting down where you’re not going to crush any buildings is kinda the whole point. Plus, it’d kind of suck to land in the freeway and get plowed under by a semi. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2012, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-cosmonauts-land-on-land-while-astronauts-landed-on-water/624819/3 "2012-06-11T15:30:00Z")
[As is traditional, a link to the article under discussion.](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1179/why-did-cosmonauts-land-on-land-while-astronauts-landed-on-water) As to the actual question, my WAG is that they don’t have that many roads in Siberia. And hitchhiking where there are no roads (or traffic, in the event that the capsule landed within walking distance of a road) is kind of pointless. ---
**Author:** ![Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b38774/32.png) [@Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Attack_from_the_3rd_dimension)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2012, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-cosmonauts-land-on-land-while-astronauts-landed-on-water/624819/4 "2012-06-11T15:31:20Z")
You’re in the middle of nowhere. You have valuable scientific data and equipment to guard from marauding reactionary nomadic pawns of the capitalists. You can’t abandon your post. ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2012, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-cosmonauts-land-on-land-while-astronauts-landed-on-water/624819/5 "2012-06-11T15:38:05Z")
How about being hundreds of miles from anything resembling civilization? Like roads. How about being surrounded by wild animals that might eat you? Seriously - they carry guns for just that possibility. How about being kinda weak and wobbly, and not up to hiking across the lawn to pick up the newspaper, nevermind an overland trek? ---
**Author:** ![Cliffy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/59ef9b/32.png) [@Cliffy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cliffy)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2012, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-cosmonauts-land-on-land-while-astronauts-landed-on-water/624819/6 "2012-06-11T23:47:51Z")
[Vokshod 2](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voskhod_2) (March 1965, first-ever spacewalk) landed 240 miles off course in a wild area of the Siberian Urals. The crew didn’t know where they were, and Mission Control didn’t know either. By day 2, they’d been located and a rescue party skied in with food and supplies and built a makeshift cabin. On day 3 the cosmonauts skied out to the closest helicopter landing site, miles away, and returned to civilization that way. Siberia is big, and it’s empty, and it was even emptier in the '60’s. It also got to -20 degrees. Trying to walk home would get you dead of exposure or animal attacks before you’d been out more than a day. –Cliffy ---
**Author:** ![gamerunknown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/6bbea6/32.png) [@gamerunknown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gamerunknown)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2012, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-cosmonauts-land-on-land-while-astronauts-landed-on-water/624819/7 "2012-06-16T18:29:17Z")
> [@Attack from the 3rd dimension](#): > > You’re in the middle of nowhere. You have valuable scientific data and equipment to guard from marauding reactionary nomadic pawns of the capitalists. You can’t abandon your post. Get ye flask. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2012, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-cosmonauts-land-on-land-while-astronauts-landed-on-water/624819/8 "2012-06-16T21:54:48Z")
Did the Soviet space agency provide flasks? Because vodka at -20, F or C (not much difference at that point), might be chilled just right. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2012, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-cosmonauts-land-on-land-while-astronauts-landed-on-water/624819/9 "2012-06-16T22:04:33Z")
> [@TonyRV2](#): > > In this article Cecil states that cosmonauts were sometimes stranded for a few days after landing. What prevented them from opening the capsule and say, hitchhike home? Well, I think the reason that the Russians came down on land, and we came down on water is because they had a lot of land area, and we had (and have) a huge navy with aircraft carriers and helicopters that could relatively easily recover sea landings. Plus, there’s a lot more ocean to splash down in than there is continental US. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2012, 11:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-cosmonauts-land-on-land-while-astronauts-landed-on-water/624819/10 "2012-06-17T11:46:19Z")
The Soviets wanted _control._ Controlled news access, controlled physical access. At sea, this can be difficult. In Siberia–100% easy. ---
**Author:** ![TBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@TBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TBG)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2012, 5:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-cosmonauts-land-on-land-while-astronauts-landed-on-water/624819/11 "2012-06-18T05:46:09Z")
> [@TonyRV2](#): > > In this article Cecil states that cosmonauts were sometimes stranded for a few days after landing. What prevented them from opening the capsule and say, hitchhike home? In Soviet Union being stranded for few days is your vacation time. Don’t forget sunscreen! ---
**Author:** ![Ranchoth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranchoth/32/1066_2.png) [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2012, 5:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-cosmonauts-land-on-land-while-astronauts-landed-on-water/624819/12 "2012-06-18T05:58:58Z")
Funny story; on at least a few Soyuz flights, there were backup landing sites (at least, places they’d aim for if they had to make an emergency reentry and landing) outside of Russia, [in the Ukraine, in France…and in Texas](http://www.svengrahn.pp.se/histind/Ugol/Ugol.html#Prairies). ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2012, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-cosmonauts-land-on-land-while-astronauts-landed-on-water/624819/13 "2012-06-18T18:46:38Z")
In Russia, water land on YOU! Been a while since I read the original article on this, but besides the things mentioned here (i.e. no roads, control, etc), I seem to recall that it’s a hell of a lot cheaper to land on land (especially when you have lots of it as the Russians did) than to land on water, so that was also a factor. -XT ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2012, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-cosmonauts-land-on-land-while-astronauts-landed-on-water/624819/14 "2012-06-18T19:08:48Z")
> [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](#): > > The Soviets wanted _control._ > > Controlled news access, controlled physical access. > > At sea, this can be difficult. > > In Siberia–100% easy. Bullshit. > [@](#): > > Been a while since I read the original article on this, but besides the things mentioned here (i.e. no roads, control, etc), I seem to recall that it’s a hell of a lot cheaper to land on land (especially when you have lots of it as the Russians did) than to land on water, so that was also a factor. That’s the reason. This [blog](http://amyshirateitel.com/vintagespace/) covers the history of the various landing technologies examined by the early Soviet and American space missions at some length if your interested. The basic reason for why the US went for water landings and the Soviet’s went for ground recoveries is because there was a huge amount of error in determining where an unguided capsule would come down, and so you needed to aim for a really large target. The US didn’t have a large enough expanse of empty land to shoot for, and so they had to settle for the more expensive water recovery, while the Soviet Union covered some sizable percentage of the Earth’s land area and had a population density smaller then Saudi Arabia, and so could use the cheaper method without worrying about missing or ending up hitting someones house. ---
**Author:** ![Powers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/edb3f5/32.png) [@Powers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Powers)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2012, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-cosmonauts-land-on-land-while-astronauts-landed-on-water/624819/15 "2012-06-19T15:42:48Z")
> [@Simplicio](#): > > The US didn’t have a large enough expanse of empty land to shoot for, and so they had to settle for the more expensive water recovery, while the Soviet Union covered some sizable percentage of the Earth’s land area and had a population density smaller then Saudi Arabia, and so could use the cheaper method without worrying about missing or ending up hitting someones house. Alaska ain’t big enough? Powers &8^] ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2012, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-cosmonauts-land-on-land-while-astronauts-landed-on-water/624819/16 "2012-06-19T16:02:47Z")
[QUOTE=Powers] Alaska ain’t big enough? [/QUOTE] Hopefully this is a joke. If not, you might not be aware of this but one of the parameters that NASA was laboring under was that the astronauts actually had to survive the landing. Without that, then sure…Alaska would have worked fine. 😛 -XT ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2012, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-cosmonauts-land-on-land-while-astronauts-landed-on-water/624819/17 "2012-06-19T17:21:18Z")
> [@XT](#): > > Hopefully this is a joke. If not, you might not be aware of this but one of the parameters that NASA was laboring under was that the astronauts actually had to survive the landing. Without that, then sure…Alaska would have worked fine. 😛 > > -XT Alaska is colder than Siberia, or is Alaska too far north to hit? ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2012, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-cosmonauts-land-on-land-while-astronauts-landed-on-water/624819/18 "2012-06-19T18:00:49Z")
[QUOTE=carnivorousplant] Alaska is colder than Siberia, or is Alaska too far north to hit? [/QUOTE] Neither. Terrain. Alaska doesn’t have an equivalent to the huge steppes of Siberia in which to land in. Much of it is pretty rugged and mountainous and isn’t well suited to such a landing…not if you want the crew to survive. -XT ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2012, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-cosmonauts-land-on-land-while-astronauts-landed-on-water/624819/19 "2012-06-19T18:11:06Z")
> [@XT](#): > > Neither. Terrain. Alaska doesn’t have an equivalent to the huge steppes of Siberia in which to land in. Ah, thanks. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2012, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-cosmonauts-land-on-land-while-astronauts-landed-on-water/624819/20 "2012-06-19T22:05:07Z")
Astronauts didn’t land on water. They splashed down in water. The cosmonauts had no choice but to land on land, the alternative being a splat. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-cosmonauts-land-on-land-while-astronauts-landed-on-water/624819.md?page=2)