Manned Spacecraft

For the first decade, Soviet and American space programs worked in competition. However, planners on both sides of that competition recognized early on the importance of eventually developing joint programs. This recognition led to the creation of the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project (ASTP). The purpose of this project was to make possible the docking of two crewed spacecraft, an Apollo and Soyuz vehicle, in orbit. Once again, the primary purpose of a crewed space-flight project was symbolic rather than scientific—but this time the goal was to demonstrate high-minded cooperativeness of political détente.

In July, 1975, the last Apollo flight docked with a Soyuz spacecraft for a total of 47 hours and 17 minutes. During that time, two Soviet cosmonauts and three American astronauts visited each others' spacecraft and conducted a series of scientific and technical experiments.

In spite of the success of the ASTP, it was nearly two decades before another such meeting occurred. Early in 1995, the American space shuttle Discovery docked with the Russian space station Mir. U.S. astronauts then entered the Russian vehicle and exchanged gifts with their Russian counterparts.