Gemini
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NASA
60 Years Ago: Gemini III, America’s First Two-Person Flight
On March 23, 1965, the United States launched the Gemini III spacecraft with astronauts Virgil “Gus” Grissom and John Young aboard, America’s first two-person spaceflight. Grissom earned the honor as the first person to enter space twice and Young as the first member of the second group of astronauts to fly in space. During their three-orbit flight they carried out the first orbital maneuvers…
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NASA
Fallout from the Unauthorized Gemini III Space Sandwich
“I hid a sandwich in my spacesuit,” Astronaut John W. Young confessed in the April 2, 1965, issue of Life Magazine. The conversation about and the consumption of the sandwich, which lasted only about 30 seconds during the Gemini III flight, became a serious matter that drew the ire of Congress and NASA’s administrator after the crew returned home. Congress was particularly…
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NASA
Hubble Spots a Supernova
The subject of this NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image is a supernova-hosting galaxy located about 600 million light-years away in the constellation Gemini. Hubble captured this image roughly two months after a supernova named SN 2022aajn was discovered. The supernova is visible as a blue dot at the center of the image, brightening the hazy body of the galaxy. Other than the…
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NASA
Artist’s Concept of Gemini Spacecraft
Two astronauts are seated inside the Gemini spacecraft in this artist’s concept made in January 1965. The Gemini program was an early NASA human spaceflight program designed to bridge the Mercury and Apollo programs. Its main goal was to test equipment and mission procedures in Earth orbit and to train astronauts and ground crew for future Apollo missions. The first two Gemini missions were…
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NASA
60 Years Ago: Uncrewed Gemini 2 Paves the Way for the First Crewed Mission
On Jan. 19, 1965, Gemini 2 successfully completed the second of two uncrewed test flights of the spacecraft and its Titan II booster, clearing the way for the first crewed mission. The 18-minute suborbital mission achieved the primary goals of flight qualifying the Gemini spacecraft, especially its heat shield during a stressful reentry. Recovery forces retrieved the capsule following its…
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CES 2025
TCL Brings Next-gen Google TVs with Gemini Model to CES 2025
TCL Electronics, a leading consumer electronics brand and the world’s top two TV brand, announced at CES 2025 that it is deepening its partnership with Google TV and will launch all-new Google TVs with Gemini capabilities in 2025, promising to transform home entertainment with immersive and intelligent features. TCL Brings Next-gen Google TVs with Gemini Model to CES 2025 With…
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NASA
55 Years Ago: Manned Orbiting Laboratory Cancellation
The Manned Orbiting Laboratory (MOL), a joint classified project of the U.S. Air Force (USAF) and the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), sought to establish a crewed platform in low Earth orbit to obtain high-resolution photographic imagery of America’s 1960s Cold War adversaries. Approved in 1965, the MOL Program envisioned a series of space stations launched from a new pad in…
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NASA
60 Years Ago: Gemini 1 Flies a Successful Uncrewed Test Flight
On April 8, 1964, Gemini 1 successfully completed the first uncrewed test flight of the Gemini spacecraft and its Titan II booster. The three-orbit mission proved the structural integrity of the spacecraft and the launch vehicle, paving the way for a second uncrewed test flight and ultimately missions with astronauts. The primary goals of Project Gemini included proving the techniques…
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NASA
Gemini VI Astronauts Thomas P. Stafford and Walter M. Schirra Jr.
Astronauts Thomas P. Stafford (left), and Walter M. Schirra Jr., pose for the camera during suiting up exercises on Oct. 22, 1965. Stafford was selected among the second group of astronauts in September 1962 by NASA to participate in Projects Gemini and Apollo. In December 1965, he piloted Gemini VI, which made the first rendezvous in space with Gemini VII, and helped develop…
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NASA
60 Years Ago: NASA Selects Its Third Group of Astronauts
On Oct. 18, 1963, NASA announced the selection of its third group of astronauts. Chosen from 720 military and civilian applicants, the newest group of 14 astronauts comprised the best educated class up to that time. Seven represented the U.S. Air Force, four the U.S. Navy, one the U.S. Marine Corps, and two were civilians. NASA selected them to fly…
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