Mercury Gemini Apollo Skylab ASTP Shuttle ISS

    The Apollo-Soyuz Test Project (ASTP) (Russian: Eksperimentalniy polyot Apollon-Soyuz, lit. "Experimental flight Apollo-Soyuz", commonly referred to by the Soviets as "Soyuz-Apollo"), conducted in July 1975, was the first joint U.S.-Soviet space flight, as a symbol of the policy of détente that the two superpowers were pursuing at the time. It involved the docking of an Apollo Command/Service Module with the Soviet Soyuz 19. The unnumbered Apollo vehicle was a surplus from the terminated Apollo program and the last one to fly. This mission ceremoniously marked the end of the Space Race that had begun in 1957 with the Sputnik launch.

    The mission included both joint and separate scientific experiments (including an engineered eclipse of the Sun by Apollo to allow Soyuz to take photographs of the solar corona), and provided useful engineering experience for future joint US-Russian space flights, such as the Shuttle-Mir Program and the International Space Station.

    ASTP was the last manned US space mission until the first Space Shuttle flight in April 1981. It was also U.S. astronaut Donald "Deke" Slayton's only space flight. He was chosen as one of the original Mercury Seven astronauts in April 1959, but had been grounded until 1972 for medical reasons.

    		     

    [ Launches | Astronauts ]

    Apollo Crew
    Position Astronaut
    Commander Thomas P. Stafford
    Fourth and last spaceflight
    Command Module Pilot Vance D. Brand
    First spaceflight
    Docking Module Pilot Donald K. "Deke" Slayton
    Only spaceflight
    Soyuz Crew
    Position Cosmonaut
    Commander Alexey Leonov
    Second and last spaceflight
    Flight Engineer Valeri Kubasov
    Second spaceflight

    [ Launches | Astronauts { Mercury | Gemini | Apollo | Skylab | ASTP } ]