It actually reminds me a bit of this old sci fi story: https://abitofscififromthepast.wordpress.com/2018/04/29/the-dead-astronaut-j-g-ballard/ https://abitofsci

It actually reminds me a bit of this old sci fi story: https://abitofscififromthepast.wordpress.com/2018/04/29/the-dead-astronaut-j-g-ballard/ https://abitofscififromthepast.wordpress.com/2018/04/29/the-... Published during the cold war, so unlikely to be based on the real thing. (Also the spacecraft in this are re-entering rather than falling to ground during launch.)