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For a Timeline, I working on the Moon race is going to be much Closer.
The Soviets take Kennedy Moon speech seriously and start building the N1 sooner.
Sergei Korlev has better health and does not die in 1966.
The Soviet are able to do the first space craft around the moon in 1968.
In June of 1969, It look like the USSR will win the Moon race.
A Soyuz 7K-LOK and a LK lander are on route to the Moon with Cosmonauts Alexey Leonov and Oleg Makkarov.

Leonov space walks to the LK Lander.
Something is wrong with the Lander.
He has to return to the Soyuz and they return to earth, having not made the Moon Landing.

Apollo 11 will become the first space craft that lands on the moon on July 20 1969.

My Question is what kind of problem with the lander would cause Leonov to abandon the Landing.

I have 4 possibilities.

1: the Hatch on the LK will not open.
I don't like this option.
I see Leonov tearing the Hatch off someway and landing with the interior open to space if necessary. :D

2: The LK engines will not fire.

3: The Batteries do not have enough power to allow the landing.
Concern about the weight of landers, the battery are not protected enough from the cold of space and lose power. By the time Leonov get in the lander, there is not enough power.

4 There is a problem with the Life support in LK lander.
It has leak oxygen and there is not enough on board the lander to allow Leonov to make the landing.

Which of these choices would best explain why Leonov would have to abort the landing?

Are they realistic?
If not, what would make them realistic?

Are there any better choices as to what could cause Leonov to abort the landing?

Thank You.
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