gridsandorchids t1_j5z56m5 wrote
Reply to comment by stickmanDave in Why do sample return missions such as OSIRIS-REx use their own reentry vehicles instead of just going to the space station for pickup and return with ISS equipment? by PromptCritical725
He's talking about something going wrong in the final approach to dock, which also shows how complicated the whole concept is. Once you get to a matching orbit, and close enough on a stellar scale, it's still highly delicate and specialized to actually safely recover it.
MIR had a Progress craft smash into it and almost kill the station and inhabitants and it was just docked and then pushed out a bit and brought back in.
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