Soyuz 3 was a Soviet space mission launched on October 26, 1968. The spacecraft was part of the Soyuz program and aimed to test docking techniques in space. It was piloted by cosmonaut Georgi Beregovoy, who successfully completed a series of maneuvers in low Earth orbit. During the mission, Soyuz 3 achieved a significant milestone by docking with the Soyuz 2 spacecraft, although the two vehicles did not physically connect. The mission lasted for five days, and upon re-entry, Beregovoy safely returned to Earth, marking a successful achievement for the Soviet space program.