Orchestral Manoeuvres in Space

Orchestral Manoeuvres in Space
Project Gemini by NASA

1962-1966

This month marks the 50th anniversary of NASA's Project Gemini. Gemini was carried out from 1962 to 1966, during the build up of the Space Race between USA and Russia. The Gemini spacecraft was designed by a team of NASA engineers led by Jim Chamberlin, and built by McDonnell Aircraft, in St Louis. There were two uncrewed test flights (1964, 1965) and 10 crewed (March 23, 1965 until November 11–15, 1966) all launched on a Titan II missile. The Gemini flights helped NASA learn to work and live in space, paving the way for the successful Apollo human landings on the Moon. The Gemini astronauts, including Ed White (who would die in the Apollo 1 fire in 1967) also took some of the most memorable photos in NASA history. With NASA's help and funding, a team of researchers at Arizona State University led by lunar scientist Mark Robinson has retrieved from the archives (and scanned at high resolution) dozens of outtakes that never made it into wide circulation. We present a selection of our favorite ones above.

View the complete archive at ASU.