Jun. 27, 1995: STS-71 was the third mission of the US/Russian Shuttle-Mir Program and the first Space Shuttle docking to Russian space station Mir. It started on 27 June 1995 with the launch of Space Shuttle Atlantis from launch pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The Shuttle delivered a relief crew of two cosmonauts Anatoly Solovyev and Nikolai Budarin to the station and recovered Increment astronaut Norman Thagard. Atlantis returned to Earth on 7 July with a crew of eight. It was t

Liftoff! On this day in 1995, Space Shuttle Atlantis blasted off on mission STS-71, marking a historic moment for space exploration. Launch Highlights: The launch was originally planned for late May but was delayed to June to accommodate Russian preparations for the first shuttle/Mir docking. This included spacewalks to ready the station and the launch of the Spektr module with U.S. research equipment. The June 23 launch was scrubbed due to rain and lightning, and a second attempt on June 24 was