'''Norman Earl Thagard''' (born July 3, 1943) is an American scientist and former NASA astronaut. He is the first American to ride to space on board a Russian vehicle. He did this on March 14, 1995 in the Soyuz TM-21 spacecraft for the Russian Mir-18 mission.

Early life

Thagard was born in Marianna, Florida, but considers Jacksonville, Florida, to...(continue reading)