On 3 February 1995, the launch of , flying STS-63, opened operations on Mir. Referred to as the "near-Mir" mission, the mission saw the first rendezvous of a Space Shuttle with Mir as the orbiter approached within of the station as a dress rehearsal for later docking missions and for equipment testing. Five weeks after Discovery departure, the EO-18 crew, including the first US cosmonaut Norman Thagard, arrived in Soyuz TM-21. The EO-17 crew left a few days later, with Polyakov completing his record-breaking 437-day spaceflight. During EO-18, the Spektr science module (which served as living and working space for American astronauts) was launched aboard a Proton rocket and docked to the station, carrying research equipment from America and other nations. The expedition's crew returned to Earth aboard following the first Shuttle–Mir docking mission, STS-71. Atlantis, launched on 27 June 1995, successfully docked with Mir on 29 June becoming the first US spacecraft to dock with a Russian spacecraft since the ASTP in 1975. The orbiter delivered the EO-19 crew and returned the EO-18 crew to Earth. The EO-20 crew were launched on 3 September, followed in November by the arrival of the docking module during STS-74.
On 3 February 1995, the launch of , flying ST.S-63, opened operations on Mir. Referred to as the "near-Mir" mission, the mission saw the first rendezvous of a Space Shuttle with Mir as the orbiter approached within of the station as a dress rehearsal for later docking missions and for equipment testing. Five weeks after Discovery departure, the EO-18 crew including the first US cosmonaut Norman Thagard, arrived in Soyuz TM.-21. The EO-17 crew left a few days later, with Polyakov completing his record-breaking 437-day spaceflight During EO-18, the Spektr science module (which served as living and working space for American astronauts) was launched aboard a Proton rocket and docked to the station, carrying research equipment from America and other nations. The expedition's crew returned to Earth aboard following the first Shuttle–Mir docking mission, STS-71 Atlantis launched on 27 June 1995, successfully docked with Mir on 29 June becoming the first US spacecraft to dock with a Russian spacecraft since the ASTP in 1975. The orbiter delivered the EO-19 crew and returned the EO-18 crew to Earth. The EO-20 crew were launched on 3 September followed in November by the arrival of the docking module during STS-74.