The second United States manned space program was named by the two-man crew. They named it after the third constellation of the Zodiac, and its twin stars. Gemini went public in January, 1962. Like all NASA programs the goals are clear cut and specific. They read like this:
*To subject two men and supporting equipment to long durations flights -a requirement for projected later trips to the moon or deeper space
*To effect rendezvous and docking with other orbiting vehicles, and to maneuver the docked vehicles in space, using the propulsion system of the target vehicle for such maneuvers
*To perfect methods of reentry and landing the spacecraft at a pre-selected land-landing point
*To gain additional information concerning the effects of weightlessness on crew members and to record the physiological reactions of crew members during long duration flights.
Gemini 1- unmanned orbital- launched April 8,1964- reentered April 12, 1964
Gemini 2 – unmanned suborbital – launched January 19, 1965 – splashdown January 19, 1965
Gemini 3 – Gus Grissom and John Young – launched March 23,1965 – splashdown March 23, 1965 – The greatest signifigance in this project may have been that it was the first manned flight in Gemini
Gemini 4 – James McDivitt and Ed White – launched June 3,1965 – splashdown June 7, 1965 -This launch included the first exstravehicular activity by an American astronaut and Ed White took the first space walk.
Gemini 5 – Gordon Cooper and Pete Conrad – launched August 21, 1965 – splashdown August 29, 1965 – This launch marked the first use of fule cells for elctrical power.
Gemini 6A – Walter Schirra and Tom Stafford – launched December 15, 1965 – splashdown December 16 1965
Gemini 7- Frank Borman and Jim Lovell – launched December 4, 1965 – splashdown December 18, 1965 – This launch was an experiement to determine the affects on someone spending 14 days in space.
Gemini 8 – Neil Armstrong and David Scott – launched March 16, 1966 – splashdown March 16 1966
Gemini 9A – Tom Stafford and Gene Cernan – launched June 3, 1966 – splashdown June 6, 1966
Gemini 10 – John Young and Michael Collins – launched July 18, 1966 – splashdown July 21, 1966
Gemini 11 – Pete Conrad and Richard Gordon – launched September 12,1966 – splashdown September 15,1966
Gemini 12 – Jim Lovell and Buzz Aldrin – launched November 11, 1966 – splashdown November 15, 1966
These twelve launches were successful and on many levels and set the standards even higher for those who would follow in every NASA project. In a very short time the United States made a place in space travel.
Sources:
www-pao.ksc.nasa.gov
