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The Man Who Fell to Earth

Vladimir Komarov was the first Soviet cosmonaut to fly into outer space more than once, and he became the first human to die on a space mission. He was killed when the Soyuz 1 space capsule crashed after re-entry on April 24, 1967, due to a parachute failure. However, because he died when the capsule crashed into the ground, he is not considered the first human fatality in outer space. The above photograph shows the charred remains of Komarov being looked over by Soviet officials during his open casket funeral. Only a chipped heel bone survived the crash.