{"id":168259,"date":"2008-10-01T07:30:00","date_gmt":"2008-10-01T11:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/?migration=converted-node-340224"},"modified":"2023-07-25T11:19:16","modified_gmt":"2023-07-25T15:19:16","slug":"project-gemini-apollos-training-ground","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/missions\/apollo\/project-gemini-apollos-training-ground\/","title":{"rendered":"Project Gemini: Apollo’s Training Ground"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"\" class=\"padding-top-5 padding-bottom-3 width-full maxw-full hds-module hds-module-full wp-block-nasa-blocks-article-intro\"><div class=\"width-full maxw-full article-header\"><div class=\"margin-bottom-2 width-full maxw-full\"><p class=\"label carbon-60 margin-0 margin-bottom-3 padding-0\">2 min read<\/p><h1 class=\"display-48 margin-bottom-2\">Project Gemini: Apollo’s Training Ground<\/h1><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n<div id=\"\" class=\"hds-media hds-module wp-block-image\"><div class=\"margin-left-auto margin-right-auto nasa-block-align-inline\"><div class=\"hds-media-wrapper margin-left-auto margin-right-auto\"><figure class=\"hds-media-inner hds-cover-wrapper hds-media-ratio-fit \"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/279521main-gemini-launch-lg-0.jpg\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"1600\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/279521main-gemini-launch-lg-0.jpg?w=1200\" class=\"attachment-2048x2048 size-2048x2048\" alt=\"Gemini-Titan 5 rocket launches\" style=\"transform: scale(1); transform-origin: 50% 50%; object-position: 50% 50%; object-fit: cover;\" block_context=\"nasa-block\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/279521main-gemini-launch-lg-0.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/279521main-gemini-launch-lg-0.jpg?resize=225,300 225w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/279521main-gemini-launch-lg-0.jpg?resize=768,1024 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/279521main-gemini-launch-lg-0.jpg?resize=1152,1536 1152w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/279521main-gemini-launch-lg-0.jpg?resize=300,400 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/279521main-gemini-launch-lg-0.jpg?resize=450,600 450w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/279521main-gemini-launch-lg-0.jpg?resize=675,900 675w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/279521main-gemini-launch-lg-0.jpg?resize=900,1200 900w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" loading=\"eager\" \/><\/a><\/figure><figcaption class=\"hds-caption padding-y-2\"><div class=\"hds-caption-text p-sm margin-0\">Gemini-Titan 5 lifts off from Launch Complex 19 on Aug. 21, 1965 carrying astronauts Gordon Cooper and Pete Conrad.<\/div><div class=\"hds-credits\">NASA<\/div><\/figcaption><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<p>On May 5, 1961, Alan Shepard’s Mercury flight was inked in history books. Twenty days later, President John F. Kennedy committed the United States to landing a man on the moon before the close of the decade. Project Gemini was the training ground for the moon missions of Apollo.<br> Although the Gemini program was based at NASA’s Manned Spacecraft Center in Houston, now the Johnson Space Center, each of the Gemini-Titan vehicles launched from Launch Complex 19 at the Launch Operations Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla.<br> Astronauts Gus Grissom and John Young lifted off March 23, 1965 on Gemini 3, the first human flight of the project. The nearly five-hour mission demonstrated the new capsule’s maneuverability in orbit. On Gemini 4, astronaut Edward White became the first American to venture out of the safe confines of a capsule and into the vacuum of space.<br> The following missions continued the streak of firsts. Gemini 5 marked the first time fuel cells were used to provide electrical power to a spacecraft, allowing an eight-day mission. Gemini 6 crew members Wally Schirra and Tom Stafford met up with Gemini 7 astronauts Frank Borman and Jim Lovell and the two crews carried out the first space rendezvous. The Gemini 7 mission lasted a record two weeks.<br> The first docking with another spacecraft\u2014an Agena rocket stage\u2014took place during Gemini 8. When a stuck capsule thruster caused the docked vehicles to begin spinning wildly, astronaut Neil Armstrong undocked and regained control of the capsule.<br> Gemini 9 rendezvoused with an unmanned Augmented Target Docking Adapter, but docking was impossible due to the failed jettison of the adapter’s docking shroud. The three-day mission featured a challenging two-hour spacewalk by astronaut Gene Cernan. NASA continued to accumulate extensive experience in rendezvous, docking, spacewalk and orbital maneuvering during the next two flights, Gemini 10 and Gemini 11.<br> Gemini 12 brought the program to a close. During the nearly four-day mission, astronaut Buzz Aldrin set a spacewalk record, spending more than five hours outside the capsule while it was docked to an Agena booster.<br> The Gemini missions gave the agency crucial experience in real-time troubleshooting and advanced space operations – knowledge that paved the way to the moon.<\/p>\n\n\n<div id=\"\" class=\"hds-media hds-module wp-block-image\"><div class=\"margin-left-auto margin-right-auto nasa-block-align-inline\"><div class=\"hds-media-wrapper margin-left-auto margin-right-auto\"><figure class=\"hds-media-inner hds-cover-wrapper hds-media-ratio-none \"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/279524main_gemini_test_lg.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1600\" height=\"1200\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/279524main_gemini_test_lg.jpg?w=1600\" class=\"attachment-2048x2048 size-2048x2048\" alt=\"Main Gemini launch\" style=\"transform: scale(1); transform-origin: 50% 50%; object-position: 50% 50%; object-fit: cover;\" block_context=\"nasa-block\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/279524main_gemini_test_lg.jpg 1600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/279524main_gemini_test_lg.jpg?resize=300,225 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/279524main_gemini_test_lg.jpg?resize=768,576 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/279524main_gemini_test_lg.jpg?resize=1024,768 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/279524main_gemini_test_lg.jpg?resize=1536,1152 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/279524main_gemini_test_lg.jpg?resize=400,300 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/279524main_gemini_test_lg.jpg?resize=600,450 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/279524main_gemini_test_lg.jpg?resize=900,675 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/279524main_gemini_test_lg.jpg?resize=1200,900 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1600px) 100vw, 1600px\" \/><\/a><\/figure><figcaption class=\"hds-caption padding-y-2\"><div class=\"hds-caption-text p-sm margin-0\">An Agena target vehicle (left) and Gemini capsule (right) are prepared for docking in earthbound checkouts Sept. 30, 1965.<\/div><div class=\"hds-credits\">NASA<\/div><\/figcaption><\/div><\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>On May 5, 1961, Alan Shepard’s Mercury flight was inked in history books. Twenty days later, President John F. Kennedy committed the United States to landing a man on the moon before the close of the decade. Project Gemini was the training ground for the moon missions of Apollo. Although the Gemini program was based […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":175365,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nasa_hds_core_meta_l10n":"en-US","nasa_hds_core_meta_article_editor":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_article_contacts":[],"nasa_hds_core_meta_article_topic":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_linked_locations":[],"nasa_hds_core_meta_article_related_articles":[],"hds_migrate_meta_pr_release_id":"","hds_migrate_meta_pr_release_type":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_location_x":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_location_y":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_gallery_images":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[2713,2716],"news-tags":[],"internal-terms":[],"coauthors":[],"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"Project Gemini: Apollo’s Training Ground","url":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/missions\/apollo\/project-gemini-apollos-training-ground\/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/missions\/apollo\/project-gemini-apollos-training-ground\/"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/279524main_gemini_test_lg.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/279524main_gemini_test_lg.jpg"},"articleSection":"Missions","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"NASA"}],"creator":["NASA"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"NASA","logo":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/themes\/nasa\/assets\/images\/nasa-logo.svg"},"keywords":["Missions","Gemini","Apollo"],"dateCreated":"2008-10-01T11:30:00Z","datePublished":"2008-10-01T11:30:00Z","dateModified":"2023-07-25T15:19:16Z"},"rendered":"<meta name=\"parsely-title\" content=\"Project Gemini: Apollo’s Training Ground\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-link\" content=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/missions\/apollo\/project-gemini-apollos-training-ground\/\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-type\" content=\"post\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-image-url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/279524main_gemini_test_lg.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-pub-date\" content=\"2008-10-01T11:30:00Z\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-section\" content=\"Missions\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-tags\" content=\"Missions,Gemini,Apollo\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-author\" content=\"NASA\" \/>","tracker_url":"https:\/\/cdn.parsely.com\/keys\/nasa.gov\/p.js"},"read_time":2,"time_ago":"16 years","featured_image":{"id":175365,"file":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/279524main_gemini_test_lg.jpg","title":"279524main_gemini_test_lg","alt":"","caption":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/168259"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=168259"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/168259\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":274108,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/168259\/revisions\/274108"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/175365"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=168259"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=168259"},{"taxonomy":"news-tags","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-tags?post=168259"},{"taxonomy":"internal-terms","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/internal-terms?post=168259"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=168259"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}