 |
 |  |
 | |
RENDEZVOUS IN SPACEFirst joint space travel ventureOn 17 July 1975, the USA and the USSR met in space. The rendezvous between the superpowers was a political gesture intended to assist détente. American astronaut Thomas Stafford and Soviet cosmonaut Alexei A. Leonov shook hands 225 km above the Earth after the successful docking together of their space capsules "Apollo 18" and "Soyus 19". It is not just the political significance of the space flight that should be acknowledged - despite the doubts on many observers. New and valuable technical knowledge was also obtained on docking manoeuvres and hatches as well as in relation to different air pressure conditions. This knowledge proved to be useful in subsequent space travel for docking manoeuvres on planned space stations. | |
| |
 | |
| close |