Specialists quickly swept the capsule with radiation detectors and hazard sensors to ensure it was safe for thermal cutting. "Sensors are clean, but the hull is heavily charred," an engineer called out, placing a hydraulic spreader against the rim of the hatch. "Stand by for immediate extraction! On three—one, two, three!"
The hydraulic jaws groaned under immense pressure, biting into the frozen seams of the hatch. Sparks flew as the hardened steel bolts sheared away under thousands of pounds of force. A sudden, sharp, pressurized hiss erupted from the broken seal, venting a cloud of stale, freezing air into the snow as the emergency medical team stepped forward, ready to assist.
Using a heavy winch line from the helicopter, the technicians pried the heavy circular hatch backward on its scorched hinges. The crowd of responders fell dead silent as the heavy lid finally swung open, exposing the dark, unlit interior of the sphere to the cold Antarctic air for the first time in half a century.