Returning NASA astronaut and former Mir 22 crew member John E. Blaha (left), puts his arm around his wife, Brenda, as they prepare to depart with the STS-81 crew for Johnson Space Center Jan. 23 from the Skid Strip at Cape Canaveral Air Station. NASA’s Patrick McGinnis is on the right. The STS-81 crew arrived at KSC aboard the Space Shuttle Atlantis Jan. 22 to conclude the fifth ShuttleMir docking mission and return Blaha to Earth after four months in space
Location Cape Canaveral, FL
Date January 23, 1997