SOYUZ

any of a series of 40 Soviet manned and unmanned spacecraft launched between 1967 and 1981. Soyuz 1 through 10, carrying crews of from one to three men, were launched into Earth orbit; the longest of these flights, achieved by Soyuz 9 (launched June 1, 1970), lasted nearly 18 days. Most of the remaining 30 Soyuz flights involved the docking of a Soyuz capsule with an orbiting Salyut space station. During such a mission a Soyuz crew would transfer onto the space laboratory and conduct scientific experiments for an extended period of time. The record for the longest manned mission in spaceflight history was set in 1981 by the crew of Soyuz 35 when it remained on board Salyut 6 for 185 days. Other notable Soyuz flights include the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project, the first joint space venture undertaken by the United States and the Soviet Union. During this mission, conducted in July 1975, a three-man U.S. Apollo spacecraft met and docked with the two-man Soyuz 19 craft, with the crews performing joint experiments for two days. The Soyuz T series of spacecraft was introduced in 1980. These capsules had more advanced electronics and better navigational capabilities and could comfortably house a three-member crew. Soyuz T craft, like their predecessors, were regularly used to ferry cosmonauts and supplies to and from Salyut orbiting space stations.