Apollo-Soyuz Test Project

Apollo-Soyuz Test Project

This patch is based on artist Jean Pinataro's original design for the ASTP mission emblem, which was selected by the American crew as their first choice in a competition among aerospace contractors involved in the mission.

After twice being rejected by NASA higher management for supposedly being a "graphic nightmare" (in truth, some reviewer were offended by the "cartoonish" depiction of the national flags), the crew asked Pinataro to re-design the emblem, explicitly directing her to base it on Robert McCall's depiction of the ASTP docking (with McCall's approval).

The three Star on the top, and the two stars on the bottom, represent the American and Soviet crew members, respectively.

Gene Dorr and Chris Spain