A Soyuz at Mir Credit: STS-79, Space Station Mir, NASA Explanation: Pictured above is a three person Russian Soyuz capsule [ http://solar.rtd.ut…] with wing-like solar panels extended, joined to the Mir space station [ http://antwrp.gsfc.…]. In Russian soyuz means "union" and indeed one of the milestones achieved by a Soyuz spacecraft [ http://nauts.com/hi…] was an orbital union with a US Apollo command module during the first international space [ http://nauts.com/hi…] mission (Apollo-Soyuz) [ http://www.osf.hq.n…] in 1975. The Soyuz TM spacecraft are specially modified for use with [ http://www.emba.uvm…] the Mir [ http://antwrp.gsfc.…] as ferries for cosmonauts [ http://www.jsc.nasa…] and astronauts [ http://www.jsc.nasa…] and also as lifeboats, should the need arise. This image is from an electronic still camera used by the crew of the Space Shuttle Atlantis [ http://antwrp.gsfc.…] during their latest Mir visit to pick up astronaut Shannon Lucid [ http://antwrp.gsfc.…] and drop off John Blaha.
