ASTP Overview

Early planning for a meeting in space took place in 1969. A formal agreement between the United States and the Soviet Union was signed in May of 1972.

The Soviet side of the project consisted of several launches, the first two being unmanned tests of the modified Soyuz systems. The two unmanned flights were given the Cosmos designation.

Cosmos 638 - 3-13 April 1974
Cosmos 672 - 12-18 August 1974

Soyuz 16, 2-8 December 1974, was the dress rehearsal for the real thing. Next came Soyuz 19, 15-21 July 1975, which docked with the American Apollo 18 for nearly two full days.

Soyuz 22, 15-23 September 1976, was a photographic mission flown in the capsule which had been the backup to Soyuz 19.

While ASTP was a sign of an easing of cold war tensions, it would be another ten years before there was any real sharing of technologies.

 

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Page last modified: 20 June 2022 16:58:42.