One unintended benefit of Mir's technical troubles is that they have actually forced the two nations to work much more closely together than they had planned. And problems observed on Mir have led NASA to redesign a variety of systems, such as those for refrigeration and for monitoring water quality, on the International Space Station. Astronauts on Mir gain invaluable experience in long-duration space flights. Astronauts have long been trained intensively to perform specific tasks on shuttle flights lasting 18 days or less. Cosmonauts, however, learn more general skills, since they spend many months in orbit and no one can forecast all the problems they might encounter.
Cooperation serves vital Western foreign-policy objectives.
Talented Russian scientists, engineers, and manufacturing specialists remain at work in a peaceful space program rather than hiring out to renegade nations. While many of Mir's problems have been exaggerated, at least two recent mishaps were life-threatening. NASA decided to send astronauts to Mir based on its long record of safe operation. But this year, crews aboard Mir have faced two of the most serious emergencies in the history of human space flight. In June, a Progress freighter collided with the Spektr module, puncturing it.