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Author
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Topic: Code required for Vostok retrofire initiation?
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Philip
Member Posts: 6439
From: Brussels, Belgium
Registered: Jan 2001
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posted 10-09-2026 07:33 AM
   
I've read that during the six Vostok missions, the cosmonauts only knew half of a six-numbers secret code to retrofire in case of emergency. Apparently this was to avoid defection of the spacefarer above, for instance, the USA.I always believed this was a strange story, especially since the Vostok didn't have the support of a complete worldwide communications/tracking network. What do You think? |
Headshot
Member Posts: 1504
From: Vancouver, WA, USA
Registered: Feb 2012
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posted 10-09-2026 10:18 AM
I recall hearing/reading about this a VERY long time ago, although I did not know about the code being in two parts. Sadly, I cannot recall where I learned about this. |
Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 57199
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 10-09-2026 01:21 PM
Asif Siddiqi, writing in his book "Challenge to Apollo," ascribes the code more to a medical concern than any security risks. Because of physicians' concerns about the adverse effects of weightlessness on the psychology of the cosmonaut, precautions were taken to ensure that the cosmonaut could not control the spacecraft and endanger his life. A special six-digit code was programmed on a special "logic clock" to lock the controls on the ship: Gagarin was not told three of the missing digits. If the Vostok was to lose its ground command link, then Gagarin could unseal a special envelope that contained the code (I-2-5) and thus unlock the controls. Otherwise, all the flight actions took place automatically or were controlled by the ground. As pointed out above and by Siddiqi, a code held only on the ground would not work due to the communication issues. Gagarin was out of contact with the ground when his retrofire nominally occurred, resulting in him recording his remarks about what was happening rather than describing them live to the ground. |
oly
Member Posts: 1579
From: Perth, Western Australia
Registered: Apr 2015
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posted 10-09-2026 07:46 PM
Crazy. We don’t trust the cosmonaut with the controls, so we put a lock on them, but just in case you need them, they are here in this envelope.If it were me in that spacecraft, on the dark side of Earth, far out of reach of communications, I would definitely crack open that envelope just to make sure there was a secret code, and not be shocked if it was 0,0,0,0,0,0. |
Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 57199
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 10-09-2026 08:42 PM
Keep in mind that both Soviet and U.S. doctors were not sure that the human body would continue to function in space on those early flights. Even though the Russians had sent dogs and the U.S. apes, there were still lingering concerns over eyesight, hearing, blood pressure, digestive functions and psychological breaks. So while it sounds outlandish today, just the ability of the cosmonaut to retrieve and open the envelope, let alone understand what was written inside and what to do it was a sign that he was doing well. | |
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