Project Gemini was America’s second manned space program, aimed at developing techniques and equipment for the Apollo moon landing. The capsule could hold two astronauts, stay in orbit for up to two weeks, dock with other spacecraft, and test endurance, docking, and maneuvering. It used a Titan II rocket and hypergolic fuels. The capsule had removable modules for fuel, energy, life support, and reentry. The project demonstrated in-orbit docking, used a docked Agena rocket to propel into higher orbit, and introduced spacewalking. Gemini astronauts stayed in space for up to two weeks to test equipment and the human body. A larger version of the spacecraft was proposed but later scrapped.
Project Gemini was America’s second manned space program. Its main objective was to develop the techniques and equipment necessary for the subsequent moon landing, during the Apollo program. The capsule used for Project Gemini could hold two astronauts, stay in orbit for up to two weeks, conduct space flights, and dock with other spacecraft. Project Gemini eventually included eleven manned missions, testing things like endurance, docking and maneuvering in space.
The Project Gemini spacecraft was launched on the Titan II rocket, a converted ICBM. The Titan II used hypergolic fuels, hydrazine and nitrogen tetroxide, which ignite on contact. The Project Gemini capsule itself was much smaller than the Apollo capsule and could only fit two astronauts in very cramped conditions. The spacecraft’s size was limited by the mass that could be launched into orbit, as well as the need to reenter the capsule safely.
The Project Gemini capsule was the first to include removable modules; it contained a service module for fuel, energy, and life support, a reentry module to slow down the capsule and return to Earth, and a command module for astronauts. The Gemini capsule could use rocket boosters to control its movement around the Earth and would often maneuver into a set orbit to rendezvous with another vehicle. Originally, batteries were used for power, but hydrogen-oxygen fuel cells were added on later missions, the first fuel cells to be flown on a manned spacecraft.
Subsequent Project Gemini missions demonstrated protocols for in-orbit docking and used a docked Agena rocket to propel into higher orbit. Extra-vehicular activity (EVA), commonly known as “spacewalking,” was first used in Project Gemini to work outside the spacecraft. Project Gemini astronauts ultimately stayed in space for up to two weeks, making sure the human body and spacecraft equipment could hold up during the long journey to the Moon. After the Apollo project was completed, a larger version of the Gemini spacecraft was proposed to carry supplies and people into space, but the plan was later scrapped.
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