Facts about Mir

1. 09

   Valentina Tereshkova visited Mir in 1997, becoming the first woman in space to return to orbit 34 years after her historic 1963 Vostok 1 mission.

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2. 08

   Over 100 spacewalks were performed by cosmonauts aboard Mir between 1986 and 2001, with total extravehicular activity exceeding 400 hours of work outside the station.

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3. 07

   Mir's orbit decayed in March 2001 when Russian controllers deliberately deorbited the station, causing it to break apart over the South Pacific Ocean with no injuries reported on the ground.

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4. 06

   Seven modules were progressively docked to Mir's core between 1987 and 1996, expanding the station from its initial 20-ton structure to a final mass of approximately 130 tons.

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5. 05

   Mir's solar arrays generated approximately 78 kilowatts of electrical power at peak capacity, enabling continuous operations of life support systems and scientific equipment throughout the station's 15-year mission.

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6. 04

   In 1995, American astronaut Norman Thagard spent 115 days aboard Mir, setting the record for the longest spaceflight by a U.S. citizen at that time.

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7. 03

   Astronauts and cosmonauts conducted over 16,000 scientific experiments aboard Mir between 1986 and 2001, advancing knowledge in microgravity biology, materials science, and Earth observation.

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8. 02

   During a 1997 collision with a Progress cargo vessel, Mir's Spektr module depressurized but the station remained habitable as cosmonauts sealed the module hatch within minutes.

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9. 01

   The Russian space station Mir completed 86,500 orbits around Earth during its 15-year operational lifespan from 1986 to 2001.

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