Editing Mir (section)

==Station operations==

===Expeditions===
{{Main|List of Mir Expeditions}}
{{See also|List of Mir spacewalks}}
''Mir'' was visited by a total of 28 long-duration or "principal" crews, each of which was given a sequential expedition number formatted as EO-X. Expeditions varied in length (from the 72-day flight of the crew of [[Mir EO-28|EO-28]] to the 437-day flight of [[Valeri Polyakov]]), but generally lasted around six months.<ref name="SSSM"/> Principal expedition crews consisted of two or three crew members, who often launched as part of one expedition but returned with another (Polyakov launched with EO-14 and landed with EO-17).<ref name="SSSM"/> The principal expeditions were often supplemented with visiting crews who remained on the station during the week-long handover period between one crew and the next before returning with the departing crew, the station's life support system being able to support a crew of up to six for short periods.<ref name="SSSM"/><ref name="SoyuzUS">{{cite book|title=Soyuz: A Universal Spacecraft|year=2003|publisher=Springer-Praxis|isbn=978-1-85233-657-8|author1=Rex Hall  |author2=David Shayler |name-list-style=amp }}{{page needed|date=February 2021}}</ref>{{page needed|date=February 2021}} The station was occupied for a total of four distinct periods; 12 March–16 July 1986 ([[Mir EO-1|EO-1]]), 5 February 1987 – 27 April 1989 (EO-2–EO-4), the record-breaking run from 5 September 1989 – 28 August 1999 (EO-5–EO-27), and 4 April–16 June 2000 ([[Mir EO-28|EO-28]]).<ref name="SoyuzUS"/>{{page needed|date=February 2021}} By the end, it had been [[List of Mir visitors|visited by 104 different people from twelve different nations]], making it the most visited spacecraft in history (a record later [[List of International Space Station visitors|surpassed by the ISS]]).<ref name="SSSM"/>

====Early existence====
{{See also|Mir Core Module|Kvant-1}}
[[File:Mir-kvant.jpg|thumb|The core module with [[Kvant-1|''Kvant''-1]] and [[Soyuz TM-3]]]]
Due to pressure to launch the station on schedule, mission planners were left without Soyuz spacecraft or modules to launch to the station at first. It was decided to launch [[Soyuz T-15]] on a dual mission to both ''Mir'' and [[Salyut 7]].<ref name="Encyclopedia Astronautica">{{cite web|title=Mir complex|publisher=Encyclopedia Astronautica|author=Mark Wade|url=http://www.astronautix.com/m/mircomplex.html|access-date=19 November 2020|archive-date=23 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210323004602/http://www.astronautix.com/m/mircomplex.html|url-status=dead}}{{unreliable source?|date=February 2021}}</ref>{{unreliable source?|date=February 2021}}

[[Leonid Kizim]] and [[Vladimir Solovyov (cosmonaut)|Vladimir Solovyov]] first docked with ''Mir'' on 15 March 1986. During their nearly 51-day stay on ''Mir'', they brought the station online and checked its systems. They unloaded two [[Progress spacecraft]] launched after their arrival, [[Progress 25]] and [[Progress 26]].<ref name="Manned Astronautics Soyuz-T15">{{cite web|title=Spacecraft "Soyuz-T15" |publisher=Manned Astronautics |author=Alexander Anikeev |url=http://space.kursknet.ru/cosmos/english/machines/st15.sht |access-date=16 April 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090301204034/http://space.kursknet.ru/cosmos/english/machines/st15.sht |archive-date=1 March 2009 }}</ref>

On 5 May 1986, they undocked from ''Mir'' for a day-long journey to Salyut 7. They spent 51 days there and gathered 400&nbsp;kg of scientific material from Salyut 7 for return to ''Mir''. While Soyuz T-15 was at Salyut 7, the uncrewed [[Soyuz TM-1]] arrived at the unoccupied ''Mir'' and remained for 9 days, testing the new [[Soyuz spacecraft#Soyuz-TM (1986–2002)|Soyuz TM]] model. Soyuz T-15 redocked with ''Mir'' on 26 June and delivered the experiments and 20 instruments, including a multichannel [[spectrometer]]. The EO-1 crew spent their last 20 days on ''Mir'' conducting Earth observations before returning to Earth on 16 July 1986, leaving the new station unoccupied.<ref name="Encyclopedia Astronautica mireo">{{cite web|title=Mir EO-1|publisher=Encyclopedia Astronautica|author=Mark Wade|url=http://www.astronautix.com/flights/mireo1.htm|access-date=18 April 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070407163641/http://astronautix.com/flights/mireo1.htm|archive-date=7 April 2007}}{{unreliable source?|date=February 2021}}</ref>{{unreliable source?|date=February 2021}}

The second expedition to ''Mir'', [[Mir EO-2|EO-2]], launched on [[Soyuz TM-2]] on 5 February 1987. During their stay, the [[Kvant-1|''Kvant''-1]] module, launched on 30 March 1987, arrived. It was the first experimental version of a planned series of '37K' modules scheduled to be launched to ''Mir'' on ''Buran''. ''Kvant''-1 was originally planned to dock with [[Salyut 7]]; due to technical problems during its development, it was reassigned to ''Mir''. The module carried the first set of six gyroscopes for attitude<!--It's supposed to be ATTitude, meaning orientation – please don't change this to aLTitude.--> control. The module also carried instruments for X-ray and ultraviolet astrophysical observations.<ref name="MHH"/>

The initial rendezvous of the ''Kvant''-1 module with ''Mir'' on 5 April 1987 was troubled by the failure of the onboard control system. After the failure of the second attempt to dock, the resident cosmonauts, [[Yuri Romanenko]] and [[Aleksandr Laveykin]], conducted an [[Extravehicular activity|EVA]] to fix the problem. They found a trash bag which had been left in orbit after the departure of one of the previous cargo ships and was now located between the module and the station, which prevented the docking. After removing the bag, docking was completed on 12 April.<ref name="Encyclopedia Astronautica mireo2">{{cite web|title=Mir EO-2|publisher=Encyclopedia Astronautica|author=Mark Wade|url=http://www.astronautix.com/flights/mireo2.htm|access-date=18 April 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070409041745/http://astronautix.com/flights/mireo2.htm|archive-date=9 April 2007}}{{unreliable source?|date=February 2021}}</ref>{{unreliable source?|date=February 2021}}<ref name="RussianSpaceweb.com Kvant-1">{{cite web|title=Spacecraft: Manned: Mir: Kvant-1 Module |publisher=RussianSpaceweb.com |author=Anatoly Zak |url=http://www.russianspaceweb.com/mir_kvant.html |access-date=16 April 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070424231617/http://www.russianspaceweb.com/mir_kvant.html |archive-date=24 April 2007 }}</ref>

The Soyuz TM-2 launch was the beginning of a string of 6 Soyuz launches and three long-duration crews between 5 February 1987 and 27 April 1989. This period also saw the first international visitors, [[Muhammed Faris]] (Syria), [[Abdul Ahad Mohmand]] (Afghanistan) and [[Jean-Loup Chrétien]] (France). With the departure of [[Mir EO-4|EO-4]] on [[Soyuz TM-7]] on 27 April 1989 the station was again left unoccupied.<ref name="SSSM"/>

====Third start====
{{See also|Kvant-2|Kristall}}
The launch of [[Soyuz TM-8]] on 5 September 1989 marked the beginning of the longest human presence in space, until 23 October 2010, when this record was surpassed by the ISS.<ref name="Mirrecord"/> It also marked the beginning of ''Mir's'' second expansion. The [[Kvant-2]] and ''[[Kristall]]'' modules were now ready for launch. [[Alexander Viktorenko]] and [[Aleksandr Serebrov]] docked with ''Mir'' and brought the station out of its five-month hibernation. On 29 September the cosmonauts installed equipment in the docking system in preparation for the arrival of ''Kvant''-2, the first of the 20&nbsp;[[tonne]] add-on modules based on the [[TKS spacecraft]] from the [[Almaz]] programme.<ref name="Encyclopedia Astronautica mireo5">{{cite web|title=Mir EO-5|publisher=Encyclopedia Astronautica|author=Mark Wade|url=http://www.astronautix.com/flights/mireo5.htm|access-date=18 April 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070409191451/http://astronautix.com/flights/mireo5.htm|archive-date=9 April 2007 }}{{unreliable source?|date=February 2021}}</ref>{{unreliable source?|date=February 2021}}

[[File:Mir Kvant 1-Base Block-Kvant 2.jpg|thumb|''Mir'' following the arrival of [[Kvant-2|''Kvant''-2]] in 1989]]
After a 40-day delay caused by faulty computer chips, ''Kvant''-2 was launched on 26 November 1989. After problems deploying the craft's solar array and with the automated docking systems on both ''Kvant''-2 and ''Mir'', the new module was docked manually on 6 December. ''Kvant''-2 added a second set of [[control moment gyroscope]]s (CMGs, or "gyrodynes") to ''Mir'', and brought the new life support systems for recycling water and generating oxygen, reducing dependence on ground resupply. The module featured a large airlock with a one-metre hatch. A special backpack unit (known as ''Ikar''), an equivalent of the US [[Manned Maneuvering Unit]], was located inside ''Kvant''-2's airlock.<ref name="Encyclopedia Astronautica mireo5"/><ref name="russianspaceweb.com Kvant-2">{{cite web|title=Spacecraft: Manned: Mir: Kvant-2 Module |publisher=RussianSpaceWeb.com |author=Anatoly Zak |url=http://www.russianspaceweb.com/mir_kvant-2.html |access-date=18 April 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070424232442/http://www.russianspaceweb.com/mir_kvant-2.html |archive-date=24 April 2007 }}</ref>

[[Soyuz TM-9]] launched [[Mir EO-6|EO-6]] crew members [[Anatoly Solovyev]] and [[Aleksandr Nikolayevich Balandin|Aleksandr Balandin]] on 11 February 1990. While docking, the EO-5 crew noted that three thermal blankets on the ferry were loose, potentially creating problems on reentry, but it was decided that they would be manageable. Their stay on board ''Mir'' saw the addition of the ''Kristall'' module, launched 31 May 1990. The first docking attempt on 6 June was aborted due to an attitude<!--It's supposed to be ATTitude – please don't change this to aLTitude.--> control thruster failure. ''Kristall'' arrived at the front port on 10 June and was relocated to the lateral port opposite ''Kvant''-2 the next day, restoring the equilibrium of the complex. Due to the delay in the docking of ''Kristall'', EO-6 was extended by 10 days to permit the activation of the module's systems and to accommodate an EVA to repair the loose thermal blankets on Soyuz TM-9.<ref name="Encyclopedia Astronautica mireo6">{{cite web|title=Mir EO-6|publisher=Encyclopedia Astronautica|author=Mark Wade|url=http://www.astronautix.com/flights/mireo6.htm|access-date=19 April 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070411092726/http://astronautix.com/flights/mireo6.htm|archive-date=11 April 2007}}{{unreliable source?|date=February 2021}}</ref>{{unreliable source?|date=February 2021}}

''Kristall'' contained furnaces for use in producing crystals under microgravity conditions (hence the choice of name for the module). The module was also equipped with biotechnology research equipment, including a small greenhouse for plant cultivation experiments which was equipped with a source of light and a feeding system, in addition to equipment for astronomical observations. The most obvious features of the module were the two [[Androgynous Peripheral Attach System]] (APAS-89) docking ports designed to be compatible with the ''Buran'' spacecraft. Although they were never used in a ''Buran'' docking, they were useful later during the Shuttle-''Mir'' programme, providing a berthing location for US [[Space Shuttle]]s.<ref name="russianspaceweb.com Kristall">{{cite web|title=Spacecraft: Manned: Mir: Kristall Module |publisher=RussianSpaceWeb.com |author=Anatoly Zak |url=http://www.russianspaceweb.com/mir_kristall.html |date=25 May 2010 |access-date=17 December 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110514002915/http://www.russianspaceweb.com/mir_kristall.html |archive-date=14 May 2011 }}</ref>

The [[Mir EO-7|EO-7]] relief crew arrived aboard [[Soyuz TM-10]] on 3 August 1990. The new crew arrived at ''Mir'' with [[quail]] for ''Kvant''-2's cages, one of which laid an egg en route to the station. It was returned to Earth, along with 130&nbsp;kg of experiment results and industrial products, in Soyuz TM-9.<ref name="Encyclopedia Astronautica mireo6"/> Two more expeditions, [[Mir EO-8|EO-8]] and [[Mir EO-9|EO-9]], continued the work of their predecessors whilst tensions grew back on Earth.

====Post-Soviet period====
[[File:Mir from Soyuz TM-17.jpg|thumb|A view of ''Mir'' from [[Soyuz TM-17]] on 3 July 1993 showing ongoing docking operations at the station]]
The [[Mir EO-10|EO-10]] crew, launched aboard [[Soyuz TM-13]] on 2 October 1991, was the last crew to launch from the USSR and continued the occupation of ''Mir'' during [[Dissolution of the Soviet Union|the fall of the Soviet Union]]. The crew launched as Soviet citizens and returned to Earth on 25 March 1992 as Russians. The newly formed [[Russian Federal Space Agency]] (Roscosmos) was unable to finance the unlaunched ''[[Spektr]]'' and ''[[Priroda]]'' modules, instead putting them into storage and ending ''Mir's'' second expansion.<ref name="Encyclopedia Astronautica mireo10">{{cite web|title=Mir EO-10|publisher=Encyclopedia Astronautica|author=Mark Wade|url=http://www.astronautix.com/flights/mireo10.htm|access-date=19 April 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070407211042/http://astronautix.com/flights/mireo10.htm|archive-date=7 April 2007}}{{unreliable source?|date=February 2021}}</ref>{{unreliable source?|date=February 2021}}<ref name="Encyclopedia Astronautica Spektr">{{cite web|title=Spektr|publisher=Encyclopedia Astronautica|author=Mark Wade|url=http://www.astronautix.com/craft/spektr.htm|access-date=21 April 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070407052343/http://astronautix.com/craft/spektr.htm|archive-date=7 April 2007}}{{unreliable source?|date=February 2021}}</ref>{{unreliable source?|date=February 2021}}<ref name="Encyclopedia Astronautica Priroda">{{cite web|title=Priroda|publisher=Encyclopedia Astronautica|author=Mark Wade|url=http://www.astronautix.com/craft/priroda.htm|access-date=21 April 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070410031659/http://astronautix.com/craft/priroda.htm|archive-date=10 April 2007}}{{unreliable source?|date=February 2021}}</ref>{{unreliable source?|date=February 2021}}

The first human mission flown from an independent [[Kazakhstan]] was [[Soyuz TM-14]], launched on 17 March 1992, which carried the [[Mir EO-11|EO-11]] crew to ''Mir'', docking on 19 March before the departure of Soyuz TM-13. On 17 June, Russian President [[Boris Yeltsin]] and US President [[George H. W. Bush]] announced what would later become the Shuttle-''Mir'' programme, a cooperative venture which proved useful to the cash-strapped Roskosmos (and led to the eventual completion and launch of ''Spektr'' and ''Priroda''). [[Mir EO-12|EO-12]] followed in July, alongside a brief visit by French astronaut [[Michel Tognini]].<ref name="SoyuzUS"/>{{page needed|date=February 2021}} The following crew, [[Mir EO-13|EO-13]], began preparations for the Shuttle-''Mir'' programme by flying to the station in a modified spacecraft, [[Soyuz TM-16]] (launched on 26 January 1993), which was equipped with an [[APAS-89]] docking system rather than the usual probe-and-drogue, enabling it to dock to ''Kristall'' and test the port which would later be used by US Space Shuttles. The spacecraft also enabled controllers to obtain data on the dynamics of docking a spacecraft to a space station off the station's longitudinal axis, in addition to data on the structural integrity of this configuration via a test called ''Rezonans'' conducted on 28 January. [[Soyuz TM-15]], meanwhile, departed with the EO-12 crew on 1 February.<ref name="SoyuzUS"/>{{page needed|date=February 2021}}

Throughout the period following the collapse of the USSR, crews on ''Mir'' experienced occasional reminders of the [[History of post-Soviet Russia#Economic depression and social decay|economic chaos]] occurring in Russia. The initial cancellation of ''Spektr'' and ''Priroda'' was the first such sign, followed by the reduction in communications as a result of the fleet of [[tracking ship]]s being withdrawn from service by [[Ukraine]]. The new Ukrainian government also vastly raised the price of the [[Kurs (docking system)|''Kurs'']] docking systems, manufactured in [[Kyiv]]{{spaced ndash}}the Russians' attempts to reduce their dependence on ''Kurs'' would later lead to accidents during TORU tests in 1997. Various Progress spacecraft had parts of their cargoes missing, either because the consumable in question had been unavailable, or because the ground crews at Baikonur had looted them. The problems became particularly obvious during the launch of the [[Mir EO-14|EO-14]] crew aboard [[Soyuz TM-17]] in July; shortly before launch there was a black-out at the pad, and the power supply to the nearby city of [[Baikonur|Leninsk]] failed an hour after launch.<ref name="SSSM"/><ref name="SoyuzUS"/>{{page needed|date=February 2021}} Nevertheless, the spacecraft launched on time and arrived at the station two days later. All of ''Mir''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s ports were occupied, and so Soyuz TM-17 had to station-keep 200 metres away from the station for half an hour before docking while [[Progress M-18]] vacated the core module's front port and departed.<ref name="SoyuzUS"/>{{page needed|date=February 2021}}

The EO-13 crew departed on 22 July, and soon after ''Mir'' passed through the annual [[Perseids|Perseid]] [[meteor shower]], during which the station was hit by several particles. A spacewalk was conducted on 28 September to inspect the station's hull, but no serious damage was reported. [[Soyuz TM-18]] arrived on 10 January 1994 carrying the [[Mir EO-15|EO-15]] crew (including [[Valeri Polyakov]], who was to remain on ''Mir'' for 14 months), and [[Soyuz TM-17]] left on 14 January. The undocking was unusual in that the spacecraft was to pass along ''Kristall'' in order to obtain photographs of the APAS to assist in the training of space shuttle pilots. Due to an error in setting up the control system, the spacecraft struck the station a glancing blow during the manoeuvre, scratching the exterior of ''Kristall''.<ref name="SoyuzUS"/>{{page needed|date=February 2021}}

On 3 February 1994, ''Mir'' veteran [[Sergei Krikalev]] became the first Russian cosmonaut to launch on a US spacecraft, flying on {{OV|103}} during [[STS-60]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/missions/sts-60/mission-sts-60.html|title=STS-60 Mission Summary|date=29 June 2001|publisher=NASA|access-date=10 January 2014|archive-date=3 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303213447/http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/missions/sts-60/mission-sts-60.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

The launch of [[Soyuz TM-19]], carrying the [[Mir EO-16|EO-16]] crew, was delayed due to the unavailability of a payload fairing for the booster that was to carry it, but the spacecraft eventually left Earth on 1 July 1994 and docked two days later. They stayed only four months to allow the Soyuz schedule to line up with the planned Space Shuttle manifest, and so Polyakov greeted a second resident crew in October, prior to the undocking of Soyuz TM-19, when the [[Mir EO-17|EO-17]] crew arrived in [[Soyuz TM-20]].<ref name="SoyuzUS"/>{{page needed|date=February 2021}}

====Shuttle–''Mir''====
{{Main|Shuttle–Mir Program}}
{{See also|Spektr|Priroda|Mir Docking Module}}
{{stack|[[File:Atlantis docked to MIR - GPN-2000-001315.jpg|thumb|{{OV|104}} docked to ''Mir'' on [[STS-71]].]]}}
On 3 February 1995, the launch of {{OV|103}}, 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 {{convert|37|ft|m}} of the station as a dress rehearsal for later docking missions and for equipment testing.<ref name="SMH Flights">{{cite web|title=Shuttle–Mir History/Shuttle Flights and Mir Increments|publisher=NASA|url=http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/history/shuttle-mir/history/h-flights.htm|access-date=2007-03-30 |archive-date=2015-09-28 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150928151002/http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/history/shuttle-mir/history/h-flights.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=STS-63 Mission Summary |first=Jim |last=Dumoulin |publisher=NASA|date=2001-06-29 |url=http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/missions/sts-63/mission-sts-63.html|access-date=30 March 2007|archive-date=20 March 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090320085830/http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/missions/sts-63/mission-sts-63.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |first=Kathy |last=Sawyer |title=US & Russia Find Common Ground in Space – Nations Overcome Hurdles in Ambitious Partnership|newspaper=The Washington Post|page=a1|date=29 January 1995 |publisher= [[NewsBank]]}}</ref> Five weeks after ''Discovery''{{'s}} departure, the [[Mir EO-18|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 {{OV|104}} following the first Shuttle–''Mir'' docking mission, [[STS-71]].<ref name="SSSM"/><ref name="Dragonfly">{{cite book |first=Bryan |last=Burrough |date=7 January 1998 |title=Dragonfly: NASA and the Crisis Aboard Mir|place=London, UK|publisher=Fourth Estate Ltd.|isbn=978-1-84115-087-1}}{{page needed|date=February 2021}}</ref>{{page needed|date= February 2021}} ''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 [[Apollo-Soyuz Test Project|ASTP]] in 1975.<ref>{{cite book |first1=David |last1=Scott |first2=Alexei |last2=Leonov |title=Two Sides of the Moon|publisher=Pocket Books |date=2005-04-30 |isbn= 978-0-7434-5067-6}}</ref> The orbiter delivered the [[Mir EO-19|EO-19]] crew and returned the EO-18 crew to Earth.<ref name="SMH Flights"/><ref>{{cite web|title=STS-71 Mission Summary |first=Jim |last= Dumoulin |publisher=NASA|date=2001-06-29|url=http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/missions/sts-71/mission-sts-71.html|access-date=30 March 2007|archive-date=29 March 2015 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150329042625/http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/missions/sts-71/mission-sts-71.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |first=Nick |last=Nuttall |title= Shuttle homes in for Mir docking|newspaper=The Times|date=29 June 1995|publisher=NewsBank}}</ref> The [[Mir EO-20|EO-20]] crew were launched on 3 September, followed in November by the arrival of the docking module during [[STS-74]].<ref name="STS-74">{{cite web|title=STS-74 Mission Summary|first=Jim |last=Dumoulin|publisher=NASA|date=2001-06-29|url-status= dead|url= http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/missions/sts-74/mission-sts-74.html |archive-date=2016-12-20|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220034436/http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/missions/sts-74/mission-sts-74.html}}</ref><ref name="SMH Flights"/><ref>{{cite web|title=CSA – STS-74 – Daily Reports |publisher=Canadian Space Agency |date=1999-10-30 |url=http://www.asc-csa.gc.ca/eng/missions/sts-074/reports.asp |access-date=2009-09-17 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110716061546/http://www.asc-csa.gc.ca/eng/missions/sts-074/reports.asp |archive-date=2011-07-16 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|first=William |last=Harwood|title=Space Shuttle docks with Mir – Atlantis uses manoeuvres similar to those needed for construction|newspaper=The Washington Post|page=a3|date=1995-11-15|publisher=NewsBank}}</ref>

On 21 February 1996, the two-man [[Mir EO-21|EO-21]] crew was launched aboard [[Soyuz TM-23]], and they were soon joined by US crew member [[Shannon Lucid]], who was brought to the station by ''Atlantis'' during [[STS-76]]. During this mission, the first joint US spacewalk on ''Mir'' took place, deploying the [[Mir Environmental Effects Payload]] package for the docking module.<ref>{{cite news |first=William |last=Harwood |title=Shuttle becomes hard-hat area; spacewalking astronauts practice tasks necessary to build station|newspaper=The Washington Post|page=a3|date=1996-03-28|publisher=NewsBank}}</ref> Lucid became the first American to carry out a long-duration mission aboard ''Mir'' with her 188-day mission, which set the US single spaceflight record. During Lucid's time aboard ''Mir'', ''[[Priroda]]'', the station's final module, arrived as did French visitor [[Claudie Haigneré]] flying the ''Cassiopée'' mission. The flight aboard [[Soyuz TM-24]] also delivered the [[Mir EO-22|EO-22]] crew of [[Valery Korzun]] and [[Aleksandr Kaleri]].<ref name="SSSM"/><ref name="SMH Flights"/><ref>{{cite web|title=STS-76 Mission Summary|first=Jim |last=Dumoulin|publisher=NASA|date=2001-06-29|url=http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/missions/sts-76/mission-sts-76.html|access-date=2007-03-30|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130806102139/http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/missions/sts-76/mission-sts-76.html|archive-date=2013-08-06|url-status=dead}}</ref>

On 16 September 1996, with the launch of  ''Atlantis'' and the [[STS-79]] flight, Lucid's stay aboard ''Mir'' ended. During this fourth docking, [[John Blaha]] transferred onto ''Mir'' to take his place as resident US astronaut. His stay on the station improved operations in a number of areas, including transfer procedures for a docked space shuttle, "hand-over" procedures for long-duration American crew members, and "ham" [[amateur radio]] communications, as well as two spacewalks to reconfigure the station's power grid. Blaha spent four months with the EO-22 crew before returning to Earth aboard ''Atlantis'' on [[STS-81]] in January 1997, at which point he was replaced by [[physician]] [[Jerry Linenger]].<ref name="SMH Flights"/><ref>{{cite web|title=STS-79 Mission Summary|first=Jim |last=Dumoulin|publisher=NASA|date=2001-06-29|url=http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/missions/sts-79/mission-sts-79.html|access-date=2007-03-30|archive-date=2007-05-18|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070518135705/http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/missions/sts-79/mission-sts-79.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="STS-81">{{cite web|title=STS-81 Mission Summary|first=Jim |last=Dumoulin|publisher=NASA|date=2001-06-29|url=http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/missions/sts-81/mission-sts-81.html|access-date=30 March 2007|archive-date=20 May 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070520090649/http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/missions/sts-81/mission-sts-81.html|url-status=live}}</ref> During his flight, Linenger became the first American to conduct a spacewalk from a foreign space station and the first to test the Russian-built [[Orlan space suit|Orlan-M]] spacesuit alongside Russian cosmonaut [[Vasili Tsibliyev]], flying [[Mir EO-23|EO-23]]. All three crew members of EO-23 performed a "fly-around" in [[Soyuz TM-25]] spacecraft.<ref name="SSSM"/> Linenger and his Russian crewmates Vasili Tsibliyev and [[Aleksandr Lazutkin]] faced several difficulties during the mission, including the most severe fire aboard an orbiting spacecraft (caused by a malfunctioning [[Vika oxygen generator|''Vika'']]), failures of various systems, a near collision with [[Progress M-33]] during a long-distance TORU test and a total loss of station electrical power. The power failure also caused a loss of [[Spacecraft attitude control|attitude control]], which led to an uncontrolled "tumble" through space.<ref name="SSSM"/><ref name="Dragonfly"/>{{page needed|date=February 2021}}<ref name="OffPlanet">{{cite book|first=Jerry |last=Linenger|date=1 January 2001|title=Off the Planet: Surviving Five Perilous Months Aboard the Space Station Mir|url=https://archive.org/details/offplanetsurvivi00line|url-access=registration|place=New York, US|publisher=McGraw-Hill|isbn=978-0-07-137230-5}}{{page needed|date=February 2021}}</ref>{{page needed|date=February 2021}}<ref name="SMH Flights"/>

{{stack|[[File:Damaged Spektr solar array.jpg|thumb|Damaged solar arrays on the ''Mir'' ''[[Spektr]]'' module following a collision with [[Progress M-34]] in September 1997.]]}}
Linenger was succeeded by [[English-American|Anglo-American]] astronaut [[Michael Foale]], carried up by ''Atlantis'' on [[STS-84]], alongside Russian mission specialist [[Elena Kondakova]]. Foale's increment proceeded fairly normally until 25 June when during the second test of the ''Progress'' manual docking system, [[TORU]], [[Progress M-34]] collided with solar arrays on the ''[[Spektr]]'' module and crashed into the module's outer shell, puncturing the module and causing depressurisation on the station. Only quick actions on the part of the crew, cutting cables leading to the module and closing ''Spektr's'' hatch, prevented the crews having to abandon the station in [[Soyuz TM-25]]. Their efforts stabilised the station's air pressure, whilst the pressure in ''Spektr'', containing many of Foale's experiments and personal effects, dropped to a vacuum.<ref name="Dragonfly"/>{{page needed|date=February 2021}}<ref name="SMH Flights"/> In an effort to restore some of the power and systems lost following the isolation of ''Spektr'' and to attempt to locate the leak, [[Mir EO-24|EO-24]] commander [[Anatoly Solovyev]] and [[flight engineer]] [[Pavel Vinogradov]] carried out a risky salvage operation later in the flight, entering the empty module during a so-called "intra-vehicular activity" or "IVA" spacewalk and inspecting the condition of hardware and running cables through a special hatch from ''Spektr's'' systems to the rest of the station. Following these first investigations, Foale and Solovyev conducted a 6-hour EVA outside ''Spektr'' to inspect the damage.<ref name="SMH Flights"/><ref>{{Cite news|first=David |last=Hoffman|title=Crucial Mir spacewalk carries high hopes – continued Western support could hinge on mission's success|newspaper=The Washington Post|pages=a1|date=1997-08-22}}</ref>

After these incidents, the US Congress and NASA considered whether to abandon the programme out of concern for the astronauts' safety, but NASA administrator [[Daniel Goldin]] decided to continue.<ref name="OffPlanet"/>{{page needed|date=February 2021}} The next flight to ''Mir'', [[STS-86]], carried [[David Wolf (astronaut)|David Wolf]] aboard ''Atlantis''. During the orbiter's stay, Titov and Parazynski conducted a spacewalk to affix a cap to the docking module for a future attempt by crew members to seal the leak in ''Spektr''{{'}}s hull.<ref name="SMH Flights"/><ref>{{cite web|title=STS-86 Mission Summary |first=Jim |last=Dumoulin |publisher=NASA|date=2001-06-29|url=http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/missions/sts-86/mission-sts-86.html|access-date=30 March 2007|archive-date=3 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303230243/http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/missions/sts-86/mission-sts-86.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Wolf spent 119 days aboard ''Mir'' with the EO-24 crew and was replaced during [[STS-89]] with [[Andy Thomas]], who carried out the last US expedition on ''Mir''.<ref name="SMH Flights"/><ref>{{cite web|title=STS-89 Mission Summary |first=Jim |last=Dumoulin |publisher=NASA|date=2001-06-29|url=http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/missions/sts-89/mission-sts-89.html|access-date=30 March 2007|archive-date=4 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304062707/http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/missions/sts-89/mission-sts-89.html|url-status=live}}</ref> The [[Mir EO-25|EO-25]] crew arrived in [[Soyuz TM-27]] in January 1998 before Thomas returned to Earth on the final Shuttle–''Mir'' mission, [[STS-91]].<ref name="SMH Flights"/><ref>{{cite web|title=STS-91 Mission Summary |first=Jim |last=Dumoulin |publisher=NASA|date=2001-06-29|url=http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/missions/sts-91/mission-sts-91.html|access-date=30 March 2007|archive-date=4 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304111001/http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/missions/sts-91/mission-sts-91.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|first=William |last=Harwood|title=Final American returns from Mir|newspaper=The Washington Post|page=a12|date=1998-06-13|publisher=NewsBank}}</ref>

====Final days and deorbit====
{{main|Deorbit of Mir}}
[[File:Mir reentry photo.jpg|thumb|upright|''Mir'' breaks up in Earth's atmosphere over the [[South Pacific Ocean|South Pacific]] on 23 March 2001.]]
Following the 8 June 1998 departure of ''Discovery'', the EO-25 crew of [[Nikolai Budarin|Budarin]] and [[Talgat Musabayev|Musabayev]] remained on ''Mir'', completing materials experiments and compiling a station inventory. On 2 July, [[Russian Federal Space Agency|Roskosmos]] director Yuri Koptev announced that, due to a lack of funding to keep ''Mir'' active, the station would be deorbited in June 1999.<ref name="SSSM"/> The [[Mir EO-26|EO-26]] crew of [[Gennady Padalka]] and [[Sergei Avdeyev]] arrived on 15 August in [[Soyuz TM-28]], alongside physicist [[Yuri Baturin]], who departed with the EO-25 crew on 25 August in [[Soyuz TM-27]]. The crew carried out two spacewalks, one inside ''Spektr'' to reseat some power cables and another outside to set up experiments delivered by [[Progress M-40]], which also carried a large amount of propellant to begin alterations to ''Mir''{{'}}s orbit in preparation for the station's decommissioning. 20 November 1998 saw the launch of ''[[Zarya (ISS module)|Zarya]]'', the first module of the [[International Space Station|ISS]], but delays to the new station's service module [[Zvezda (ISS module)|''Zvezda'']] had led to calls for ''Mir'' to be kept in orbit past 1999. Roscosmos confirmed that it would not fund ''Mir'' past the set deorbit date.<ref name="SSSM"/>

The crew of [[Mir EO-27|EO-27]], [[Viktor Mikhailovich Afanasyev|Viktor Afanasyev]] and [[Jean-Pierre Haigneré]], arrived in [[Soyuz TM-29]] on 22 February 1999 alongside [[Ivan Bella]], who returned to Earth with Padalka in Soyuz TM-28. The crew carried out three EVAs to retrieve experiments and deploy a prototype communications antenna on ''Sofora''. On 1 June it was announced that the deorbit of the station would be delayed by six months to allow time to seek alternative funding to keep the station operating. The rest of the expedition was spent preparing the station for its deorbit; a special analog computer was installed and each of the modules, starting with the docking module, was mothballed in turn and sealed off. The crew loaded their results into Soyuz TM-29 and departed ''Mir'' on 28 August 1999, ending a run of continuous occupation, which had lasted for eight days short of ten years.<ref name="SSSM"/> The station's [[control moment gyroscope]]s (CMGs, or "gyrodynes") and main computer were shut down on 7 September, leaving [[Progress M-42]] to control ''Mir'' and refine the station's orbital decay rate.<ref name="SSSM"/>

Near the end of its life, there were plans for private interests to purchase ''Mir'', possibly for use as the first orbital [[television studio|television]]/[[Film studio|movie studio]].{{Citation needed|date=March 2021|reason=no source provided}} The privately funded [[Soyuz TM-30]] mission by MirCorp, that was launched on 4 April 2000, carried two crew members, [[Sergei Zalyotin]] and [[Aleksandr Kaleri]], to the station for two months to do repair work with the hope of proving that the station could be made safe. This was to be the last crewed mission to ''Mir''—while Russia was optimistic about ''Mir''{{'s}} future, its commitments to the ISS project left no funding to support the aging station.<ref name="SSSM"/><ref name="CNN">{{cite news|title=Mir Destroyed in Fiery Descent|publisher=CNN|url=http://archives.cnn.com/2001/TECH/space/03/23/mir.descent/index.html|access-date=10 November 2009|date=22 March 2001|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091121134003/http://archives.cnn.com/2001/TECH/space/03/23/mir.descent/index.html|archive-date=21 November 2009}}</ref>

''Mir''{{'}}s deorbit was carried out in three stages. The first stage involved waiting for [[drag (physics)|atmospheric drag]] to [[orbital decay|reduce the station's orbit]] to an average of {{convert|220|km|mi}}. This began with the docking of [[Progress M1-5]], a modified version of the [[Progress-M]] carrying 2.5 times more fuel in place of supplies. The second stage was the transfer of the station into a 165&nbsp;×&nbsp;220&nbsp;km (103&nbsp;×&nbsp;137&nbsp;mi) orbit. This was achieved with two burns of Progress M1-5's control engines at 00:32 UTC and 02:01 UTC on 23 March 2001. After a two-orbit pause, the third and final stage of the deorbit began with the burn of Progress M1-5's control engines and main engine at 05:08 UTC, lasting 22+ minutes. [[Atmospheric reentry]] (arbitrarily defined beginning at 100&nbsp;km/60&nbsp;mi AMSL) occurred at 05:44 UTC near [[Nadi]], [[Fiji]]. Major destruction of the station began around 05:52 UTC and most of the unburned fragments fell into the [[South Pacific Ocean]] around 06:00 UTC.<ref name="Reentry News">{{cite web|title=The Final Days of Mir |publisher=The Aerospace Corporation |url=http://www.reentrynews.com/Mir/sequence.html |access-date=16 April 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090522131135/http://www.reentrynews.com/Mir/sequence.html |archive-date=22 May 2009 }}</ref><ref name="Reentry Page">{{cite web|title=Mir Space Station Reentry Page|publisher=Space Online|url=http://www.ik1sld.org/mirreentry_page.htm|access-date=16 April 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070614034327/http://www.ik1sld.org/mirreentry_page.htm|archive-date=14 June 2007}}</ref>

===Visiting spacecraft===
{{Main|Soyuz (spacecraft)|Progress (spacecraft)|Space Shuttle}}
{{See also|List of human spaceflights to Mir|List of uncrewed spaceflights to Mir}}
[[File:Soyuz acoplada MIR.jpg|thumb|right|[[Soyuz TM-24]] docked with ''Mir'' as seen from the {{OV|104}} during [[STS-79]]]]
''Mir'' was primarily supported by the Russian [[Soyuz spacecraft|Soyuz]] and [[Progress spacecraft]] and had two ports available for docking them. Initially, the fore and aft ports of the core module could be used for dockings, but following the permanent berthing of ''Kvant''-1 to the aft port in 1987, the rear port of the new module took on this role from the core module's aft port. Each port was equipped with the plumbing required for Progress cargo ferries to replace the station's fluids and also the guidance systems needed to guide the spacecraft for docking. Two such systems were used on ''Mir''; the rear ports of both the core module and ''Kvant''-1 were equipped with both the [[Igla (spacecraft docking system)|Igla]] and [[Kurs (docking system)|Kurs]] systems, whilst the core module's forward port featured only the newer Kurs.<ref name="SSSM"/>

Soyuz spacecraft provided personnel access to and from the station allowing for crew rotations and cargo return, and also functioned as a lifeboat for the station, allowing for a relatively quick return to Earth in the event of an emergency.<ref name="SoyuzUS"/>{{page needed|date=February 2021}}<ref name="Shuttle-Mir-Soyuz">{{cite web|title=Shuttle–Mir History/Spacecraft/Mir Space Station/Soyuz|publisher=NASA|date=4 March 2004|author=Kim Dismukes|url=http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/history/shuttle-mir/spacecraft/s-mir-soyuz.htm|access-date=11 February 2010|archive-date=15 February 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090215015225/http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/history/shuttle-mir/spacecraft/s-mir-soyuz.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref> Two models of Soyuz flew to ''Mir''; [[Soyuz T-15]] was the only Igla-equipped [[Soyuz-T]] to visit the station, whilst all other flights used the newer, Kurs-equipped [[Soyuz-TM]]. A total of 31 (30 crewed, [[Soyuz TM-1|1 uncrewed]]) Soyuz spacecraft flew to the station over a fourteen-year period.<ref name="SoyuzUS"/>{{page needed|date=February 2021}}

The uncrewed Progress cargo vehicles were only used to resupply the station, carrying a variety of cargoes including water, fuel, food and experimental equipment. The spacecraft were not equipped with reentry shielding and so, unlike their Soyuz counterparts, were incapable of surviving reentry.<ref name="Shuttle-Mir-Progress">{{cite web|title=Shuttle–Mir History/Spacecraft/Mir Space Station/Progress Detailed Description|publisher=NASA|date=4 March 2004|author=Kim Dismukes|url=http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/history/shuttle-mir/spacecraft/s-mir-detailed-main.htm|access-date=11 February 2010|archive-date=2 September 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090902030958/http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/history/shuttle-mir/spacecraft/s-mir-detailed-main.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref> As a result, when its cargo had been unloaded, each Progress was refilled with rubbish, spent equipment and other waste which was destroyed, along with the Progress itself, on reentry.<ref name="SoyuzUS"/>{{page needed|date=February 2021}} In order to facilitate cargo return, ten Progress flights carried [[VBK-Raduga|''Raduga'']] capsules, which could return around 150&nbsp;kg of experimental results to Earth automatically.<ref name="SoyuzUS"/> ''Mir'' was visited by three separate models of Progress; the original [[Progress 7K-TG|7K-TG]] variant equipped with Igla (18 flights), the [[Progress-M]] model equipped with Kurs (43 flights), and the modified [[Progress-M1]] version (3 flights), which together flew a total of 64 resupply missions.<ref name="SoyuzUS"/> Whilst the Progress spacecraft usually docked automatically without incident, the station was equipped with a remote manual docking system, [[TORU]], in case problems were encountered during the automatic approaches. With TORU, cosmonauts could guide the spacecraft safely in to dock (with the exception of the catastrophic docking of [[Progress M-34]], when the long-range use of the system resulted in the spacecraft striking the station, damaging ''Spektr'' and causing [[Uncontrolled decompression|decompression]]).<ref name="SSSM"/>{{rp|265}}

In addition to the routine Soyuz and Progress flights, it was anticipated that ''Mir'' would also be the destination for flights by the Soviet [[Buran programme|''Buran'' space shuttle]], which was intended to deliver extra modules (based on the same "37K" [[Satellite bus|bus]] as ''Kvant''-1) and provide a much improved cargo return service to the station. ''[[Kristall]]'' carried two [[Androgynous Peripheral Attach System]] (APAS-89) docking ports designed to be compatible with the shuttle. One port was to be used for ''Buran''; the other for the planned ''Pulsar'' X-2 telescope, also to be delivered by ''Buran''.<ref name="SSSM"/><ref name="russianspaceweb.com Kristall"/> The cancellation of the ''Buran'' programme meant these capabilities were not realised until the 1990s when the ports were used instead by US [[Space Shuttle]]s as part of the Shuttle-''Mir'' programme (after testing by the specially modified [[Soyuz TM-16]] in 1993). Initially, visiting [[Space Shuttle orbiter]]s docked directly to ''Kristall'', but this required the relocation of the module to ensure sufficient distance between the shuttle and ''Mir''{{'}}s solar arrays.<ref name="SSSM"/> To eliminate the need to move the module and retract solar arrays for clearance issues, a [[Mir Docking Module]] was later added to the end of ''Kristall''.<ref name="Encyclopedia Astronautica mirodule">{{cite web|title=Mir Docking Module|author=Mark Wade|publisher=Encyclopedia Astronautica|url=http://www.astronautix.com/craft/mirodule.htm|access-date=11 February 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100108043835/http://astronautix.com/craft/mirodule.htm|archive-date=8 January 2010}}</ref> The shuttles provided crew rotation of the American astronauts on station and carried cargo to and from the station, performing some of the largest transfers of cargo of the time. With a space shuttle docked to ''Mir'', the temporary enlargements of living and working areas amounted to a complex that was the largest [[spacecraft]] in history at that time, with a combined mass of {{convert|250|t|short ton|lk=on}}.<ref name="SSSM"/>

===Mission control centre===
{{Main|RKA Mission Control Center}}
[[File:Russian Mission Control Center.jpg|thumb|[[RKA Mission Control Center]] (2007)]]
''Mir'' and its resupply missions were controlled from the Russian [[Mission control center|mission control centre]] ({{langx|ru|Центр управления полётами}}) in [[Korolyov (city)|Korolyov]], near the [[RKK Energia]] plant. Referred to by its acronym ЦУП ("TsUP"), or simply as 'Moscow', the facility could process data from up to ten spacecraft in three separate control rooms, although each control room was dedicated to a single programme; one to ''Mir''; one to ''Soyuz''; and one to the Soviet space shuttle ''Buran'' (which was later converted for use with the ISS).<ref name="TsUP">{{cite news|url=http://www.space.com/news/spacestation/missioncontrol_russia_000814.html|work=Space.com|access-date=13 July 2011|date=14 August 2000|author=Yuri Karash|title=Russia's Mission Control: Keeping ISS Aloft|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100207165302/http://www.space.com/news/spacestation/missioncontrol_russia_000814.html|archive-date=7 February 2010}}</ref><ref name="MCC-M">{{cite web|url=http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/history/shuttle-mir/history/to-h-b-operations-mcc.htm|access-date=6 November 2010|date=4 April 2004|publisher=NASA|title=Shuttle-Mir Background – Mission Control Center – Moscow|archive-date=16 October 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111016215954/http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/history/shuttle-mir/history/to-h-b-operations-mcc.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref> The facility is now used to control the [[Russian Orbital Segment]] of the ISS.<ref name="TsUP"/> The flight control team were assigned roles similar to the system used by NASA at their mission control centre in [[Houston]], including:<ref name="MCC-M"/>
* The Flight Director, who provided policy guidance and communicated with the mission management team;
* The Flight Shift Director, who was responsible for real-time decisions within a set of flight rules;
* The Mission Deputy Shift Manager (MDSM) for the MCC was responsible for the control room's consoles, computers and peripherals;
* The MDSM for Ground Control was responsible for communications;
* The MDSM for Crew Training was similar to NASA's 'capcom,' or capsule communicator; usually someone who had served as the ''Mir'' crew's lead trainer.

===Unused equipment===
Three command and control modules were constructed for the ''Mir'' program. One was used in space; one remained in a Moscow warehouse as a source of repair parts if needed,<ref>[[Air & Space/Smithsonian]], October/November 1997, p. 17 'Mir Lands in Wisconsin"</ref> and the third was sold to an educational and entertainment complex in the US in 1997. [[Tommy Bartlett Exploratory]] purchased the unit and had it shipped to [[Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin]], where it became the centrepiece of the complex's Space Exploration wing.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Russian Space Station MIR|url=https://www.tommybartlett.com/exploratory/exhibits/russian-space-station/|access-date=2023-02-14|website=Tommy Bartlett Exploratory|language=en-US}}</ref>

===Safety aspects===

====Ageing systems and atmosphere====
In the later years of the programme, particularly during the Shuttle-''Mir'' programme, ''Mir'' suffered from various systems failures. It had been designed for five years of use, but eventually flew for fifteen, and in the 1990s was showing its age, with frequent computer crashes, loss of power, uncontrolled tumbles through space and leaking pipes. [[Jerry Linenger]] in his book about his time on the facility says that the cooling system had developed tiny leaks too small and numerous to be repaired, that permitted the constant release of [[coolant]]. He says that it was especially noticeable after he had made a spacewalk and become used to the bottled air in his spacesuit. When he returned to the station and again began breathing the air inside ''Mir'', he was shocked by the intensity of the smell and worried about the possible negative health effects of breathing such contaminated air.<ref name="OffPlanet"/>{{page needed|date=February 2021}}

Various breakdowns of the Elektron oxygen-generating system were a concern; they led crews to become increasingly reliant on the backup [[Vika oxygen generator|''Vika'']] [[chemical oxygen generator|solid-fuel oxygen generator]] (SFOG) systems, which led to a fire during the handover between EO-22 and EO-23.<ref name="SSSM"/><ref name="Dragonfly"/>{{page needed|date=February 2021}} (see also [[ISS ECLSS#Vika|ISS ECLSS]])

====Accidents====
[[File:Mir after Fire.jpg|thumb|A charred panel in [[Kvant-1|''Kvant''-1]] following the ''Vika'' fire]]
Several accidents occurred which threatened the station's safety, such as the glancing collision between ''[[Kristall]]'' and [[Soyuz TM-17]] during proximity operations in January 1994. The three most alarming incidents occurred during [[Mir EO-23|EO-23]]. The first was on 23 February 1997 during the handover period from [[Mir EO-22|EO-22]] to EO-23, when a malfunction occurred in the backup [[Vika oxygen generator|''Vika'']] system, a [[chemical oxygen generator]] later known as solid-fuel oxygen generator (SFOG). The ''Vika'' malfunction led to a fire which burned for around 90 seconds (according to official sources at the TsUP; astronaut [[Jerry M. Linenger|Jerry Linenger]] insists the fire burned for around 14 minutes), and produced large amounts of toxic smoke that filled the station for around 45 minutes. This forced the crew to don respirators, but some of the respirator masks initially worn were broken. Some of the [[fire extinguisher]]s mounted on the walls of the newer modules were immovable.<ref name="Dragonfly"/>{{page needed|date=February 2021}}<ref name="OffPlanet"/>{{page needed|date=February 2021}}
[[File:Mir collision damage STS086-720-091.JPG|thumb|Picture of the damage caused by the collision with [[Progress M-34]]. Picture was taken by [[Space Shuttle Atlantis|Space Shuttle ''Atlantis'']] during [[STS 86]]]]
The other two accidents concerned testing of the station's [[TORU]] manual docking system to manually dock [[Progress M-33]] and [[Progress M-34]]. The tests were to gauge the performance of long-distance docking and the feasibility of removal of the expensive [[Kurs (docking system)|''Kurs'']] automatic docking system from Progress spacecraft. Due to malfunctioning equipment, both tests failed, with Progress M-33 narrowly missing the station and Progress M-34 striking ''[[Spektr]]'' and puncturing the module, causing the station to depressurise and leading to ''Spektr'' being permanently sealed off. This in turn led to a power crisis aboard ''Mir'' as the module's solar arrays produced a large proportion of the station's electrical supply, causing the station to power down and begin to drift, requiring weeks of work to rectify before work could continue as normal.<ref name="SSSM"/><ref name="Dragonfly"/>{{page needed|date=February 2021}}

====Radiation and orbital debris====
[[File:Space Debris Low Earth Orbit.png|thumb|right|[[Space debris]] in [[low Earth orbit]]]]
Without the protection of the Earth's atmosphere, cosmonauts were exposed to higher levels of [[radiation]] from a steady flux of [[cosmic ray]]s and trapped protons from the [[South Atlantic Anomaly]]. The station's crews were exposed to an [[absorbed dose]] of about 5.2&nbsp;[[Gray (unit)|cGy]] over the course of the [[Mir EO-18]] expedition, producing an [[equivalent dose]] of 14.75&nbsp;[[Sievert|cSv]], or 1133&nbsp;μSv per day.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Biodosimetry Results from Space Flight Mir-18 |journal=Radiation Research |year=1997 |volume=148 |issue=5 |pages=S17–S23 |doi=10.2307/3579712 |author=Yang TC |display-authors=etal |jstor=3579712|bibcode=1997RadR..148S..17Y}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1016/S0273-1177(98)01070-9 |title=Radiation environment on the Mir orbital station during solar minimum |journal=[[Advances in Space Research]] |year=1998 |volume=22 |issue=4 |pages=501–510 |author=Badhwar GD |pmid=11542778 |bibcode=1998AdSpR..22..501B 
|display-authors=1 |last2=Cash |last3=Petrov |last4=Akatov |last5=Tchernykh |last6=Shurshakov |last7=Arkhangelsky}}</ref> This daily dose is approximately that received from natural [[background radiation]] on Earth in two years.<ref>{{cite report|title=Report of the United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation to the General Assembly|date=26 July 2000|url=http://www.unscear.org/docs/reports/gareport.pdf|access-date=6 February 2011|archive-date=5 February 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090205040744/http://www.unscear.org/docs/reports/gareport.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> The radiation environment of the station was not uniform; closer proximity to the station's hull led to an increased radiation dose, and the strength of radiation shielding varied between modules; ''Kvant''-2's being better than the core module, for instance.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Measurement of the Depth Distribution of Average LET and Absorbed Dose Inside a Water – Filled Phantom on Board Space Station MIR|journal=Physica Medica|year=2001|volume=17|issue=Supplement 1|pages=128–130|pmid=11770528|url=http://www.ati.ac.at/~vanaweb/papers/Arona.pdf|access-date=6 February 2011|author=Berger T|display-authors=etal }}</ref>

The increased radiation levels pose a higher risk of crews developing cancer, and can cause damage to the [[chromosome]]s of [[lymphocyte]]s. These cells are central to the [[immune system]] and so any damage to them could contribute to the lowered [[immunity (medical)|immunity]] experienced by cosmonauts. Over time, in theory, lowered immunity results in the spread of infection between crew members, especially in such confined areas. To avoid this only healthy people were permitted aboard. Radiation has also been linked to a higher incidence of [[cataract]]s in cosmonauts. Protective shielding and protective drugs may lower the risks to an acceptable level, but data is scarce and longer-term exposure will result in greater risks.<ref name="JCB"/>{{page needed|date=February 2021}}

At the low altitudes at which ''Mir'' orbited there is a variety of [[space debris]], consisting of everything from entire spent [[rocket stage]]s and defunct [[satellite]]s, to explosion fragments, paint flakes, slag from solid rocket motors,<ref>{{Cite web|title=Space Debris Basics {{!}} The Aerospace Corporation|url=http://www.aerospace.org/cords/space-debris-basics/|website=aerospace.org|access-date=28 November 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151208141911/http://www.aerospace.org/cords/space-debris-basics/|archive-date=8 December 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref> coolant released by [[RORSAT]] nuclear powered satellites,<ref>{{Cite book|title=Space Debris: Models and Risk Analysis|url=https://archive.org/details/spacedebrismodel00klin_663|url-access=limited|last=Klinkrad|first=Heiner|publisher=Praxis Publishing Ltd.|year=2006|isbn=978-3540376743|page=[https://archive.org/details/spacedebrismodel00klin_663/page/n91 83]|bibcode=2006sdmr.book.....K}}</ref> [[Project West Ford|small needles]], and many other objects. These objects, in addition to natural [[micrometeoroid]]s,<ref>{{cite journal|author=F. L. Whipple|year=1949|title=The Theory of Micrometeoroids|journal=Popular Astronomy|volume=57|page=517|bibcode=1949PA.....57..517W}}</ref> posed a threat to the station as they could puncture pressurised modules and cause damage to other parts of the station, such as the solar arrays.<ref>{{cite web|author=Henry Nahra|url=https://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov/19890016664_1989016664.pdf|title=Effect of Micrometeoroid and Space Debris Impacts on the Space Station Freedom Solar Array Surfaces|date=24–29 April 1989|publisher=NASA|access-date=7 October 2009|archive-date=6 June 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110606043107/http://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov/19890016664_1989016664.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> Micrometeoroids also posed a risk to [[Extra-vehicular activity|spacewalking]] cosmonauts, as such objects could [[Space exposure|puncture their spacesuits]], causing them to depressurise.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.space.com/missionlaunches/junk_iss_020107.html|title=Space Junk and ISS: A Threatening Problem|access-date=13 July 2011|work=Space.com|date=7 January 2002|author=Leonard David|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090523163656/http://www.space.com/missionlaunches/junk_iss_020107.html|archive-date=23 May 2009}}</ref> Meteor showers in particular posed a risk, and, during such storms, the crews slept in their Soyuz ferries to facilitate an emergency evacuation should ''Mir'' be damaged.<ref name="SSSM"/>
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