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ignition

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six-zero aspects good flight mr. Patrick

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plot start feel pressure running a

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how's it looking guidance project

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they'll find a slightly low no problem

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Roger Fido how about you for state next

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thanks ago staging Roger Capcom we're go

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for staging

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Roger staging how's that thrust low

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booster that frets is looking a little

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high right Roger okay all status check

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booster go retro go right off go

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guidance guidance you go standby one

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sergeant go he can't go Chauncey go how

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do you stand guidance I go flight Roger

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Capcom where go early shutdown we have a

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Seco here play hide your shutdown black

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father we had cut off standby

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Roger Fido panting boy for having eyes

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like the eyes going over 300 feet per

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72 is to fire auto work now go we've got

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work no go little Capcom work no go

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Roger you are no go no go that's all you

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got a time here

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Roger flight area charlie at 9:00 +20

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fall angle on the retro seven degrees

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recovery will be retro firing at nine

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plus 20 Roger flight give me some

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weather and access times in that area

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please no swells and your callsign

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rescue one that Destroyer is below five

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four three two one retrofire touching

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this was not an actual Germany mission

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nobody left the ground Germany did not

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abort we have simply edited together an

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isolated launch with shots of the flight

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controllers simulating that launch the

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flight was simulated from an adjacent

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room in the Mission Control Center

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Houston and like many other things in

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the Space Age flight simulation is done

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by computers the primary and backup crew

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for Gemini 8 will undergo 11 days of

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such simulated flights before launch day

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March 16

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early in the program experts sit down

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and analyze the Gemini 8 flight they

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know it is a three day mission its

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primary purposes include rendezvous in

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space women Agena target vehicle the

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first docking in space and a two-hour

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spacewalk by pilot David Scott the

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experts then devise problems that could

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occur some simple some quite challenging

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they feed these problems into a computer

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and sit back and see what happens

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perhaps with a little glee at any rate

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the crew in the simulator and the

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controller at the console are given the

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problem both must respond correctly

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about ninety problems will be run for

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the Gemini 8 mission on the schedule are

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two days devoted to the Agena target

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vehicle for days devoted to network

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simulations and two days scheduled for

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running re-entry simulations including

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emergency reentry's eleven days of

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problem solving most probably none of

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them would turn up during the flight but

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if one should the crew and the five

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thousand people in the ground network

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that support these two men would be

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ready several days before Gemini 8 will

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leave the ground the USS boxer steams

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toward the primary recovery zone where

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the mission will normally end it begins

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training its complement of officers and

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men in recovery operations instead of

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launching amphibious strike missions the

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boxer now launches helicopters for

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search and retrieval of astronauts on

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board is the commander of the western

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Atlantic recovery forces known as Task

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Force one forty point three two ships

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six helicopters

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and six aircraft are assigned to this

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task force all five man Gemini flights

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to date have been recovered as planned

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in the primary zone still 10 more ships

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54 aircraft and 5,000 additional men

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will be deployed at different stations

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around the world for recovery there are

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nine other planned landing areas lying

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within the three major zones of the

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eastern Atlantic the mid Pacific and the

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Western Pacific in the western Pacific

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the USS Leonard F Mason a destroyer

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begins exercises on the retrieval of a

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border plate model of the Germany space

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craft the Mason will cover three landing

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areas within zone three it will be

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backed up by aircraft from Okinawa and

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Japan the chief difference between the

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primary area where the boxer is

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stationed and a secondary area such as

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this is the comprehensiveness of

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coverage the number of aircraft ships

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and recovery specialists on station in

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addition a special launch abort area

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covers the landmass and immediate

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offshore areas at Cape Kennedy recovery

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teams go out before the astronauts enter

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the spacecraft in case of an ejected

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abort from the launch pad or shortly

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after liftoff there could be more

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extreme contingencies the emergency

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might be such that a spacecraft could

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not land in a planned landing area in a

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dire emergency the command planet might

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have to fire the retrorockets and come

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right down there statistics come into

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play here the world is 70% water and 30%

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land the odds are strongly weighted

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toward a water landing aircraft are

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stationed at 12 points to locate the

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spacecraft in this emergency any

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commercial shipping in the area might

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then be called for assistance to pick up

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the astronauts freighters Oilers tankers

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any ship with heavy hoist equipment

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if the crew comes down over land they

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would use the ejection seats leave the

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spacecraft and land by parachute

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astronauts have not only a complete

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survival kit to sustain them but they

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trained to live off the land even desert

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and jungle weather Germany comes down

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over water or land recovery is planned

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and coordinated by a NASA team of

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specialists they setup the requirements

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for a mission and work closely with the

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Department of Defense DoD then commits

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the necessary ships and aircraft to do

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the job

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the DoD manager for manned spacecraft

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Support directs worldwide recovery

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forces he is in contact with two main

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elements under his command the Atlantic

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recovery Control Center Cape Kennedy and

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the Pacific recovery control center

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Hawaii the red telephone puts him into

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direct contact with the highest levels

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of the Department of Defense for further

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assistance but all of this the red

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telephone and the contingency aircraft

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off Pago Pago Island South Pacific seems

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remote on the 16th of March the crew is

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entering their spacecraft for what has

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every sign of being a normal flight at

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the same time on launch complex 14 the

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Atlas Aegina count is only 25 minutes

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from liftoff the Gemini mission is

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largely based on a successful orbit of

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the target vehicle the Agena count has

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no holds right on the nose at 10 o'clock

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Eastern Standard Time the Atlas launch

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vehicle ignites

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Atlas has three main propulsion engines

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which ignited liftoff - our booster

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engines and one is a sustainer engine

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the booster engines cutoff first some

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two minutes 40 seconds into the flight

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the sustainer engine then takes over and

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propels the Agena to an altitude of 650

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4,000 190 feet - small vernier engines

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on the Atlas continue to position the

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Agena properly in the later phases of

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launch they cut off at five minutes six

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seconds after liftoff the Agena

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propulsion system then inserts the

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target vehicle into a circular orbit

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today the flight plan calls for a

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circular orbit of 161 nautical miles

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something close to that would be

185
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acceptable the Agena propulsion system

186
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can be started from the ground and a

187
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burn completed to change the orbit but

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as the final figures come up to the

189
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flight dynamics officer no in-flight

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burns will be needed Aegina has hit the

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planned circular orbit of 161 nautical

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miles this is a good beginning for any

193
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rendezvous flight the news is given the

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crew by the spacecraft communicator

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pilot Scott comes back with just what

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the doctor ordered

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the flight director now calls for launch

198
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of Gemini 8 at 11:40 and 59 seconds

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Eastern Standard Time offshore the

200
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launch site recovery forces are fully

201
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deployed they now can only wait like the

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five four

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[Music]

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the liftoff came as flight director

205
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Gemini 8 goes into the clouds my above

206
00:11:24,009 --> 00:11:22,129
Cape Kennedy as the spacecraft comes out

207
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of the clouds an aerial chase plane

208
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picks it up for a close look at what

209
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it's like to ride as a spacecraft crew

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on top of a booster after 50 seconds the

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crew releases the restraints which are

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required for seat ejection Gemini 8 was

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inserted into an orbit of 86 nautical

214
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miles by 146 nautical miles very close

215
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to the planned values of 86 by 145

216
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nautical miles the launch site abort is

217
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the first contingency that has passed

218
00:12:16,629 --> 00:12:14,689
successfully a carefully trained team

219
00:12:20,649 --> 00:12:16,639
has been released and returns to other

220
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duties with two good orbits target

221
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vehicle and spacecraft Gemini 8 had a

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head start on rendezvous and docking the

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maneuvers for rendezvous would be

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essentially the same as those performed

225
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by Gemini 6 so fast does the space

226
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program accelerate that rendezvous was

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the primary objective of Gemini 6 in

228
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December but three months later it is

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March and rendezvous almost seems

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routine everyone is focused more on

231
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docking everyone except those who fly

232
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the mission then you take things step by

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step this is simply control Houston

234
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about two minutes ago Neil Armstrong

235
00:13:04,509 --> 00:13:02,299
called in over Tanana Reeve and he was

236
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able to confirm at that time that radar

237
00:13:11,169 --> 00:13:08,629
lock had been established Roger do you

238
00:13:17,920 --> 00:13:11,179
have solid radar lock on with you Gina

239
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thank you sounds good after radar lock

240
00:13:35,079 --> 00:13:30,870
on the crew will circularize their orbit

241
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meantime the ground does not sit still

242
00:13:42,290 --> 00:13:39,620
idly waiting for something to happen

243
00:13:43,670 --> 00:13:42,300
recovery forces are constantly shifting

244
00:13:46,160 --> 00:13:43,680
in response to the orbit of the

245
00:13:50,210 --> 00:13:46,170
spacecraft changing station according to

246
00:13:52,460 --> 00:13:50,220
a detailed recovery plan the USS

247
00:13:56,210 --> 00:13:52,470
Cochrane a destroyer in the mid Pacific

248
00:13:58,220 --> 00:13:56,220
takes position for a 4-4 recovery that

249
00:14:02,749 --> 00:13:58,230
is recovery in the fourth revolution in

250
00:14:04,309 --> 00:14:02,759
zone 4 zone 3 will be the planned

251
00:14:07,329 --> 00:14:04,319
landing zone for the next three

252
00:14:09,980 --> 00:14:07,339
revolutions four five six and seven

253
00:14:12,230 --> 00:14:09,990
after that Gemini 8 will not be over a

254
00:14:14,480 --> 00:14:12,240
planned landing area again until the

255
00:14:18,980 --> 00:14:14,490
tenth revolution then it passes over the

256
00:14:20,990 --> 00:14:18,990
eastern Atlantic zone if an emergency

257
00:14:22,730 --> 00:14:21,000
occurs in the eighth or ninth revolution

258
00:14:25,370 --> 00:14:22,740
the spacecraft will land in a

259
00:14:27,259 --> 00:14:25,380
contingency area recovery is supported

260
00:14:30,829 --> 00:14:27,269
there by aircraft and available

261
00:14:33,050 --> 00:14:30,839
commercial shipping but right now much

262
00:14:34,990 --> 00:14:33,060
of this seems academic the crew has

263
00:14:43,260 --> 00:14:35,000
other business

264
00:15:06,569 --> 00:14:52,350
[Music]

265
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and that's great man

266
00:15:22,640 --> 00:15:19,550
first thing we really have to do

267
00:15:24,590 --> 00:15:22,650
platform peril is 650 to 750

268
00:15:26,470 --> 00:15:24,600
and they're giving us the SPC loaded

269
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y'all maneuver

270
00:15:35,900 --> 00:15:33,250
they're gonna give you that time

271
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I'll check your own stash this place

272
00:15:39,819 --> 00:15:36,920
wait

273
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those lucky guys are just jumping up and

274
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down we are looking at the left or

275
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command pilots window as the

276
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station-keeping exercise where the Gina

277
00:15:58,379 --> 00:15:56,239
begins Gemini 8 had no difficulty in

278
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maneuvering in the vicinity of the Agena

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the onboard film as in past flights was

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at 6 frames per second and is being

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projected at 4 times that speed after

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station keeping for 35 minutes command

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pilot Armstrong begins to move in closer

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to a Gina preparing his final docking

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approach both vehicles are traveling at

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approximately 17,500 miles per hour we

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are looking at the target docking

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adaptor end of the Agena the command

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pilot makes a docking approach by

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applying very small thrust increases to

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Gemini 8 the maximum velocity difference

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between the two vehicles at docking will

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be about 1 foot per second when the

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command pilot is about 2 feet from the

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Agena he will pause until he gets a goal

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from the Rose not Victor the double

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[Applause]

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that was it two vehicles docked for the

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first time in space

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shortly after docking the crew was

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00:17:37,200 --> 00:17:35,170
slightly surprised when Jim Lovell the

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spacecraft communicator checked in with

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00:17:51,300 --> 00:17:42,070
this caution Roger a new line and clear

304
00:17:54,870 --> 00:17:51,310
I have some information for you if you

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00:17:56,400 --> 00:17:54,880
run into trouble and the the attitude

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00:17:59,550 --> 00:17:56,410
control system eugenia

307
00:18:01,170 --> 00:17:59,560
goes wild just send in command 402 turn

308
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it off and take control to spacecraft

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did you cover that it was a routine

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00:18:13,350 --> 00:18:11,050
check you punched four zero zero into

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the on-board computer this automatically

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turns off the attitude control system of

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the Agena if the problem is a Gina

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control that ends it minutes later

315
00:18:26,090 --> 00:18:23,740
Gemini 8 passed out of communications

316
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range beyond the island of Madagascar

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the crew was preparing to begin a series

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of docking exercises and the mason was

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00:18:42,630 --> 00:18:38,410
between stations it had left 5-3 and was

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headed for a 6-3 recovery zone since we

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were in the fifth revolution the retro

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fire experts were routinely updating

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00:18:51,600 --> 00:18:49,300
their retro fire times these are usually

324
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planned for six revolutions ahead and

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00:18:57,000 --> 00:18:55,240
stored in the onboard computer it was

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about this time that gin level almost

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00:19:02,190 --> 00:18:59,200
qualified as the space prophet of the

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00:19:04,200 --> 00:19:02,200
year for seven hours after liftoff and

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27 minutes of normal docking an

330
00:19:11,250 --> 00:19:08,040
excessive yaw and roll motion occurred

331
00:19:14,340 --> 00:19:11,260
the crew punched up 400 but the trouble

332
00:19:17,210 --> 00:19:14,350
was not in the Agena unable to find an

333
00:19:19,710 --> 00:19:17,220
immediate answer mr. Armstrong undocked

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the roll rate continued to build up

335
00:19:28,410 --> 00:19:26,790
struggling to regain control mr.

336
00:19:30,240 --> 00:19:28,420
Armstrong was forced to fire the

337
00:19:32,390 --> 00:19:30,250
re-entry thrusters and gradually

338
00:19:35,160 --> 00:19:32,400
reasserted control over the spacecraft

339
00:19:37,590 --> 00:19:35,170
neither crewman experienced any loss of

340
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orientation Gemini never a pro

341
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a critical structural strain once the

342
00:19:45,900 --> 00:19:43,690
re-entry thrusters are fired there is

343
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the possibility of fuel leakage in orbit

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00:19:51,450 --> 00:19:49,500
leaking of fuel essential for reentry

345
00:19:54,539 --> 00:19:51,460
the flight had been highly successful

346
00:19:56,310 --> 00:19:54,549
through 27 minutes of docking but final

347
00:19:57,390 --> 00:19:56,320
action rests squarely on the shoulders

348
00:20:00,450 --> 00:19:57,400
of this man

349
00:20:04,230 --> 00:20:00,460
the flight director a decision came

350
00:20:06,720 --> 00:20:04,240
quickly fuel readings were too low abort

351
00:20:10,590 --> 00:20:06,730
that was the first decision others

352
00:20:12,480 --> 00:20:10,600
follow where do we recover a stream of

353
00:20:16,860 --> 00:20:12,490
facts flow into flight director Hodges

354
00:20:19,649 --> 00:20:16,870
console exact orbital position weather

355
00:20:22,409 --> 00:20:19,659
in the Pacific available daylight in

356
00:20:25,500 --> 00:20:22,419
recovery zones and the whereabouts of

357
00:20:27,270 --> 00:20:25,510
the USS Mason a destroyer which had

358
00:20:28,919 --> 00:20:27,280
repetitiously practiced picking up a

359
00:20:31,730 --> 00:20:28,929
boilerplate model of Germany in the

360
00:20:34,169 --> 00:20:31,740
waters of the Pacific came into its own

361
00:20:37,590 --> 00:20:34,179
millions of people suddenly learned that

362
00:20:38,130 --> 00:20:37,600
it existed with Gemini stabilized in

363
00:20:39,419 --> 00:20:38,140
flight

364
00:20:42,840 --> 00:20:39,429
there were several advantages to

365
00:20:44,850 --> 00:20:42,850
delaying re-entry for another orbit the

366
00:20:47,370 --> 00:20:44,860
retrofire officer would have an exact

367
00:20:49,830 --> 00:20:47,380
reading on retrofire times and the crew

368
00:20:54,120 --> 00:20:49,840
could prepare for re-entry and aircraft

369
00:20:56,100 --> 00:20:54,130
could be on station at splashdown this

370
00:20:58,289 --> 00:20:56,110
is the way it would be the NASA

371
00:21:02,940 --> 00:20:58,299
coordinator leans over toward the DoD

372
00:21:04,919 --> 00:21:02,950
console we want to recover in 7-3 the

373
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DoD manager immediately punches the

374
00:21:09,299 --> 00:21:06,549
button which puts him in contact with

375
00:21:11,760 --> 00:21:09,309
Pacific recovery control Hawaii Hawaii

376
00:21:14,610 --> 00:21:11,770
alerts the captain of the Mason he

377
00:21:18,480 --> 00:21:14,620
swings around and heads for 7-3 making

378
00:21:21,000 --> 00:21:18,490
30 knots search aircraft scramble from

379
00:21:22,649 --> 00:21:21,010
Okinawa they will be over the predicted

380
00:21:26,970 --> 00:21:22,659
landing point 10 minutes before the

381
00:21:29,070 --> 00:21:26,980
spacecraft splashes down as Gemini 8

382
00:21:31,140 --> 00:21:29,080
begins its seventh and final revolution

383
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weather is excellent in the splashdown

384
00:21:38,100 --> 00:21:35,559
area the crew is busy the command pilot

385
00:21:40,049 --> 00:21:38,110
has time for only this brief reflection

386
00:21:42,600 --> 00:21:40,059
I'd like to argue with them about going

387
00:21:46,560 --> 00:21:42,610
home but I don't know how we can that

388
00:21:49,200 --> 00:21:46,570
was all Gemini 8 sweeps past Ascension

389
00:21:51,000 --> 00:21:49,210
Island retrofire will come up over Kano

390
00:21:53,280 --> 00:21:51,010
Nigeria

391
00:21:55,820 --> 00:21:53,290
air-to-ground communications are broken

392
00:21:58,320 --> 00:21:55,830
but the Rockets fire right on the nose

393
00:22:00,419 --> 00:21:58,330
the crew begins their descent through

394
00:22:02,700 --> 00:22:00,429
the atmosphere this is the view they

395
00:22:03,750 --> 00:22:02,710
will see for a long time the high peaks

396
00:22:05,850 --> 00:22:03,760
of the Himalayas

397
00:22:07,500 --> 00:22:05,860
after these forbidding mountains the

398
00:22:12,030 --> 00:22:07,510
sweep of the Pacific will look friendly

399
00:22:14,039 --> 00:22:12,040
and hospitable waiting for Gemini 8 our

400
00:22:15,870 --> 00:22:14,049
rescue aircraft circling in the landing

401
00:22:18,870 --> 00:22:15,880
area ready to pick up an electronic

402
00:22:20,520 --> 00:22:18,880
signal from the spacecraft two aircrafts

403
00:22:22,440 --> 00:22:20,530
from okinawa were originally assigned

404
00:22:24,530 --> 00:22:22,450
here but five others were quickly

405
00:22:27,630 --> 00:22:24,540
alerted and added to the recovery team

406
00:22:29,970 --> 00:22:27,640
when Gemini 8 is only three miles away a

407
00:22:33,630 --> 00:22:29,980
c-54 catches sight of it on the main

408
00:22:35,880 --> 00:22:33,640
landing parachute after that landing is

409
00:22:37,830 --> 00:22:35,890
almost routine and Gemini 8 landed

410
00:22:39,409 --> 00:22:37,840
within two miles of the predicted impact

411
00:22:41,970 --> 00:22:39,419
point

412
00:22:44,850 --> 00:22:41,980
the first para rescue swimmer in the

413
00:22:46,890 --> 00:22:44,860
water is airman first class Neel airman

414
00:22:49,409 --> 00:22:46,900
Neel is a veteran of combat rescue work

415
00:22:51,390 --> 00:22:49,419
and a good man to have on your side he

416
00:22:56,460 --> 00:22:51,400
was quickly followed by two other rescue

417
00:22:58,500 --> 00:22:56,470
swimmers it was early afternoon in the

418
00:23:00,960 --> 00:22:58,510
Pacific but almost 11 o'clock at night

419
00:23:04,140 --> 00:23:00,970
in the Atlantic where the USS boxer had

420
00:23:07,080 --> 00:23:04,150
waited the Mason three hours away at

421
00:23:10,320 --> 00:23:07,090
splashdown reached the area at 3:17 p.m.

422
00:23:16,110 --> 00:23:10,330
local time crew and spacecraft both in

423
00:23:18,510 --> 00:23:16,120
good shape were soon aboard within 72

424
00:23:20,820 --> 00:23:18,520
hours NASA scientists would pin down the

425
00:23:22,950 --> 00:23:20,830
source of trouble a short circuit in the

426
00:23:25,740 --> 00:23:22,960
wiring of the number-8 yaw thruster had

427
00:23:27,870 --> 00:23:25,750
caused it to fire erratically the

428
00:23:30,150 --> 00:23:27,880
possibility of this failure recurring is

429
00:23:32,700 --> 00:23:30,160
slight but a master switch has now been

430
00:23:34,350 --> 00:23:32,710
added to the Gemini spacecraft the crew

431
00:23:36,510 --> 00:23:34,360
can throw this switch and cut off all

432
00:23:40,130 --> 00:23:36,520
power to the attitude thrusters in any

433
00:23:44,450 --> 00:23:42,770
once the difficulty was corrected we

434
00:23:46,549 --> 00:23:44,460
could take time out to realize that

435
00:23:48,770 --> 00:23:46,559
Gemini 8 had brought us closer to lunar

436
00:23:56,920 --> 00:23:48,780
exploration by demonstrating the first

437
00:24:05,580 --> 00:24:02,820
[Music]

438
00:24:07,560 --> 00:24:05,590
Gemini 8 also gave many of us our first

439
00:24:10,019 --> 00:24:07,570
look at men like the three young rescue

440
00:24:12,120 --> 00:24:10,029
swimmers airman Neil and Moore and Staff

441
00:24:14,730 --> 00:24:12,130
Sergeant Hewitt as well as the captain

442
00:24:17,669 --> 00:24:14,740
and crew of the Mason men who are there

443
00:24:21,659 --> 00:24:17,679
in every flight on remote stations doing

444
00:24:23,730 --> 00:24:21,669
their duty and doing it well it was

445
00:24:25,380 --> 00:24:23,740
these men who cited Gemini 8 on the

446
00:24:28,380 --> 00:24:25,390
parachute and took the crew and

447
00:24:30,419 --> 00:24:28,390
spacecraft safely aboard the Mason at

448
00:24:32,580 --> 00:24:30,429
that point we knew that the long months

449
00:24:34,799 --> 00:24:32,590
of training and the many simulations and

450
00:24:39,210 --> 00:24:34,809
the close interplay between NASA and the

451
00:24:42,000 --> 00:24:39,220
Department of Defense were sound the

452
00:24:44,190 --> 00:24:42,010
mission is ended the control room is

453
00:24:47,399 --> 00:24:44,200
empty but it will soon fill up again as

454
00:24:49,620 --> 00:24:47,409
simulations begin for the next flight we

455
00:24:52,620 --> 00:24:49,630
had achieved our first docking in space

456
00:24:54,419 --> 00:24:52,630
we experienced our first orbital abort