'Really a Smoothie': Remembering Gemini VIII, OTD in 1966 (Part 1)

By Ben Evans, on March 16th, 2021

OTD in 1966, future Moonwalkers Neil Armstrong & Dave Scott almost lost their lives. Today & tomorrow, @AmericaSpace remembers the ill-fated voyage of Gemini VIII. […]

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Clickety-Clack: Remembering the Misfortune of Gemini VI, OTD in 1965

By Ben Evans, on October 25th, 2020

OTD in 1965, #GeminiVI crewmen Wally Schirra & Tom Stafford were ready for the first rendezvous in space. But their rendezvous target had other ideas. […]

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'You Ready, Rookie?' Remembering Gemini V, OTD in 1965

By Ben Evans, on August 21st, 2020

55 years ago, #GeminiV launched astronauts Gordon Cooper & Pete Conrad on America’s longest manned spaceflight at that time. […]

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The Story of the Vanishing Rocket: Remembering the MA-1 Mission, 60 Years On

By Ben Evans, on July 29th, 2020

OTD in 1960, NASA’s effort to someday put an American into orbit suffered a setback with the MA-1 launch failure. […]

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'The Right Man': A Restoration of Faith (Part 2)

By Ben Evans, on May 16th, 2013

Atop a converted Atlas intercontinental ballistic missile, America launches its fourth man into orbit on 15 May 1963. Gordon Cooper’s 34-hour, 22-orbit voyage aboard Faith 7 would be NASA’s most challenging space mission to date. Photo Credit: NASA

Early on 14 May 1963, a hotshot pilot lay on his back in a tiny […]

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50 Years Since Sigma 7: “Solved By a Human”

By Ben Evans, on September 29th, 2012

Wally Schirra looks on as artist Cecelia ‘Cece’ Bibby stencils the Sigma 7 logo onto the side of the spacecraft. “Sigma,” wrote Schirra in his autobiography, “a Greek symbol for the sum of the elements of an equation, stands for engineering excellence. That was my goal – engineering excellence. I would not settle […]

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