The return to Earth by the nation’s first astronaut, Yi Soyeon, last Saturday was found to have been extremely dangerous.

Russia's Mission Control Center and The Korea Aerospace Research Institute said Tuesday the Soyuz TMA-11 spacecraft carrying Yi, U.S. astronaut Peggy Whitson and Russian cosmonaut Yuri Malenchenko did not follow regular landing procedures.

The two agencies noted that the return module made a dry-land crashdown two minutes earlier than scheduled some 420 kilometers from the expected landing site in Orsk, Kazakhstan.

According to the agencies, Yi and the two other astronauts experienced shock when their return module dug 30 centimeters into the ground upon landing.

At a news conference, Russian cosmonaut Malenchenko, who played the role of captain, said the cause of the irregular landing had yet to be determined. He quickly added, however, that it was most likely a technical glitch.

Meanwhile, Yi said she was frightened when the return module caught fire upon landing but soon found her calm thanks to her colleagues. Yi added that she's a simple Korean woman and not a hero.