Norman Thagard becomes the first American astronaut to ride to space on board a Russian launch vehicle.

Norman Earl Thagard is an American scientist and former U.S. Marine Corps officer and naval aviator and NASA astronaut. On March 14, 1995, he became the first American to ride to space on board a Russian vehicle, the Soyuz TM-21 spacecraft for the Russian Mir-18 mission. Therefore, Thagard was the first American cosmonaut.

An astronaut is a person trained, equipped, and deployed by a human spaceflight program to serve as a commander or crew member of a spacecraft. Although generally reserved for professional space travelers, the term is sometimes applied to anyone who travels into space, including scientists, politicians, journalists, and space tourists.

March 14 is the 73rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar; 292 days remain until the end of the year.