So Much for "Buy American"

With the Shuttle fleet grounded indefinitely and their replacements still on the drawing board, NASA's turning to foreign competition to stay in space.

The Senate has approved a NASA request that would let the space agency buy Russian-built Soyuz spacecraft (pictured). They're the only interim option for NASA to keep flights to the International Space Station.

The Soyuz has been a Russian workhorse since the 1970s. It was designed as their competitor to the US "Apollo" program. Not nearly as roomy as a current American astronauts are accustomed to, a Soyuz holds only three crew members. In fact, the Shuttle bay was designed to be big enough to capture a Soyuz in orbit and haul it back to earth -- part of the Cold War which produced both ships. (Space.com)