The historic meeting of the Soviet Union and the U.S. in space -- a major symbol of détente in the Cold War. The peaceful rendezvous and joint operations of a Soviet and American crew signaled the first part of a still-active cooperation and collaboration between the two world powers in space. The Soyuz part of the mission launched first and was met in orbit by the Apollo craft, which carried the main docking adaptor to allow the craft to link up with each other. The joint mission included the world-famous Soviet-American handshake in space and marked the end of the Space Race. The two countries would now solely focus on developing new scientific research capabilities in space while learning how to regularly travel to, live, and work in microgravity. Twenty-years later, post-Soviet Russia and the U.S. would come together once more to form the backbone of the International Space Station.