STS-86

Mission Profile

Overview

STS-86 was the seventh Shuttle docking with Mir, and a remarkable convergence of nations on a single flight deck. Aboard Atlantis flew Jean-Loup Chrétien, France's first astronaut, who in 1982 had become the first Western European in space aboard Soyuz to Salyut 7 and now returned to orbit with NASA. Beside him was Russian cosmonaut Vladimir Titov, who joined American Scott Parazynski for the first joint U.S.-Russian spacewalk conducted from a Shuttle, retrieving experiments mounted on Mir's exterior. The crew delivered a replacement attitude-control computer and four tons of supplies to the aging station, and swapped NASA's long-duration residents, leaving David Wolf aboard Mir and bringing Michael Foale home after his eventful stay. Commanded by James Wetherbee, the flight kept the Shuttle-Mir partnership running and rehearsed the international cooperation that would define the coming International Space Station.

Crew

Key Milestones

1. 1997-09-26

   Atlantis launches from LC-39A on the seventh Shuttle-Mir docking mission

2. 1997-09-27

   Atlantis docks with Mir; cargo transfer and crew handover begin

3. 1997-10-01

   Titov and Parazynski perform the first joint U.S.-Russian EVA from a Shuttle

4. 1997-10-03

   Atlantis undocks from Mir, leaving David Wolf aboard and returning Michael Foale

5. 1997-10-06

   Atlantis lands at Kennedy Space Center after nearly 11 days

Key Achievements

• Seventh Space Shuttle docking with the Mir space station

• First joint U.S.-Russian spacewalk conducted from a Space Shuttle

• Carried Jean-Loup Chrétien, France's first astronaut and first Western European in space

• Exchanged NASA long-duration crew aboard Mir, delivering David Wolf and returning Michael Foale

Related Missions

Sources

1. Spaceline: STS-86 Fact Sheet
2. Wikipedia: STS-86