A GREAT HANDWRITTEN QUESTION FROM STUDENT AND HANDWRITTEN ENVELOPE BY FAMED ASTRONAUT RICHARD GORDON. WITH CERTIFICATE OF AUTHENTICITY FROM TODD MUELLER AUTOGRAPHS

Richard Francis "Dick" Gordon Jr. was an American naval officer and aviator, test pilot, and NASA astronaut, and a football executive. He was one of 24 people to have flown to the Moon, as command module pilot of the Apollo 12 mission, which orbited the Moon 45 times.

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Richard Francis "Dick" Gordon Jr. (October 5, 1929 – November 6, 2017) was an American naval officer and aviator, test pilot, and NASA astronaut, and a football executive. He was one of 24 people to have flown to the Moon, as command module pilot of the Apollo 12 mission, which orbited the Moon 45 times.[1] Gordon had already flown in space as the pilot of the 1966 Gemini 11 mission.
Biography
Early life and education

Gordon was born in Seattle, Washington, on October 5, 1929, the first of five children of Richard Francis Gordon (1905–1963), a machinist, and his wife, Angela Frances Gordon (née Sullivan; 1904–1984), an elementary school teacher.[2] He was a Boy Scout, and earned the rank of Star Scout.[3] He graduated from North Kitsap High School in Poulsbo, Washington, in 1947, then entered the University of Washington, from where he received a Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry in 1951 and he was also a member of Phi Sigma Kappa.[4]
Naval career

After graduating from college, Gordon joined the United States Navy, and received his wings as a Naval Aviator in 1953. He then attended All-Weather Flight School and jet transitional training, and was subsequently assigned to an all-weather fighter squadron at Naval Air Station Jacksonville, Florida.[4]

In 1957, he attended the United States Naval Test Pilot School at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Maryland, and served as a flight test pilot until 1960. During this tour of duty, he did flight test work on the F-8U Crusader, F-11F Tiger, North American FJ Fury, and A-4D Skyhawk, and was the first project test pilot for the F4H-1 Phantom II. He served with Fighter Squadron 121 (VF-121) at the Naval Air Station Miramar, California, as a flight instructor in the F4H-1 and participated in the introduction of that aircraft to the Atlantic and Pacific Fleets. He was also flight safety officer, assistant operations officer, and ground training officer for Fighter Squadron 96 (VF-96) at Miramar. He logged more than 4,500 hours flying time with 3,500 hours of those hours in jet aircraft. He was also a student at the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School at Monterey, California.[4]

He won the Bendix Trophy race from Los Angeles to New York City in May 1961, flying an F4H-1 in which he established a new speed record of 869.74 miles per hour and a transcontinental speed record of 2 hours and 47 minutes.[4][5]
NASA career
Gordon poses in his Apollo 12 space suit

Gordon was one of the third group of astronauts, named by NASA in October 1963, being the oldest astronaut in his selection. He had been a finalist for the second selection, in 1962.[4]
Project Gemini
Main article: Gemini 11
Gordon during his Gemini 11 flight
Gordon during his Gemini 11 EVA

Gordon served as backup pilot for the Gemini 8 flight. In September 1966, he made his first space flight, as pilot of Gemini 11, alongside Pete Conrad. At the time, the flight set an altitude record of 1,369 kilometres (851 mi), which still stands as the highest-apogee Earth orbit.[6][7] Gordon was already good friends with Conrad, who had once been his roommate on the aircraft carrier USS Ranger. On the flight, Gordon performed two spacewalks, which included attaching a tether to the Agena and retrieving a nuclear emulsion experiment package.[4]
Apollo program
Main article: Apollo 12

Gordon was assigned as the backup command module pilot for Apollo 9. In November 1969, he flew as command module pilot of Apollo 12, the second crewed mission to land on the Moon. While his crewmates, Pete Conrad and Alan Bean, landed in the Ocean of Storms, Gordon remained in lunar orbit aboard the command module Yankee Clipper, photographing tentative landing sites for future missions.[4]

After Apollo 12, Gordon served as the backup commander of Apollo 15. He was slated to walk on the Moon as commander of Apollo 18, but the mission was canceled because of budget cuts.[8]
Pete Conrad, Dick Gordon, and Alan Bean pose with their Apollo 12 Saturn V Moon rocket in the background on the pad at Cape Canaveral on October 29, 1969

Gordon logged a total of 315 hours and 53 minutes in space, of which 2 hours and 41 minutes were spent in EVA.[4]
Astronaut office

After his flights, Gordon worked in the astronaut office. He became the chief of advanced programs in 1971. Gordon worked on the design of the Space Shuttle.[9]

He retired from NASA and the U.S. Navy in January 1972.[4]
Post-NASA career

After leaving NASA, Gordon served as executive vice president of the New Orleans Saints Professional Football Club in the National Football League (1972–1976);[2] was general manager of Energy Developers, Limited (EDL), a Texas partnership involved in a joint venture with Rocket Research Corporation for the development of a liquid chemical explosive for use in the oil and gas industry (1977); president of Resolution Engineering and Development Company (REDCO), which provided design and operational requirements for wild oil well control and fire fighting equipment on board large semisubmersible utility vessels (1978); following REDCO merger with Amarco Resources, Gordon assumed the additional duties of vice president of marketing, Westdale, an oil well servicing subsidiary of AMARCO operating in North Central Texas and Oklahoma, and also served as vice president for operations, Texas Division (1980); served as director, Scott Science and Technology, Inc., Los Angeles Division (1981–1983).[4]

In March 1982 he became president of Astro Sciences Corporation. This company provides a range of services including engineering, project management, project field support teams, to software and hardware system design for control room applications. In the summer of 1984, Gordon was a technical advisor for and played the part of "Capcom" in the CBS miniseries Space by James A. Michener.[4]

Gordon served as chairman and co-chairman of the Louisiana Heart Fund, chairman of the March of Dimes (Mother's March), honorary chairman for Muscular Dystrophy, and on the boards of directors for the Boy Scouts of America and Boys' Club of Greater New Orleans.[4]
Personal life and death

From his marriage (which ended in divorce) to his first wife Barbara Field, who died in 2014, Gordon had six children.[2][10] He died in San Marcos, California, on November 6, 2017, at the age of 88.[2][7][11] His hobbies included water skiing and golf.[4] He was buried at Arlington National Cemetery.[12]
Organizations

Gordon was a fellow of the American Astronautical Society, an associate fellow of Society of Experimental Test Pilots, a member of the Navy League, and a member of Phi Sigma Kappa.[4]
Awards and honors
Grave of Capt. Richard Francis Gordon Jr. at Arlington National Cemetery

    Navy Astronaut Wings[4]
    NASA Distinguished Service Medal[13]
    NASA Exceptional Service Medal[4]
    Bendix Trophy in 1961[4]
    Two Navy Distinguished Flying Crosses[4]
    Navy Distinguished Service Medal[4]
    Phi Sigma Kappa Merit Award in 1966[4]
    Institute of Navigation Award for 1969[4]
    Godfrey L. Cabot Award in 1970[4]
    Rear Admiral William S. Parsons Award for Scientific and Technical Progress in 1970[4]
    Manned Spacecraft Center (MSC) Superior Achievement Award
    NASA Group Achievement Award[4]
    Richard Gordon Elementary School in Kingston, Washington was named after him.[14]

Gordon was inducted into the International Space Hall of Fame with nine of his Gemini astronaut colleagues in 1982.[15] He was inducted into the United States Astronaut Hall of Fame on March 19, 1993.[16][17] In 2020, Gordon was inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame in Dayton, Ohio.[18]
In media

In the 1998 HBO miniseries From the Earth to the Moon Gordon was played by Tom Verica.[19]
Books authored

Gordon wrote the foreword for astronaut Al Worden's 2011 book, Falling to Earth: An Apollo 15 Astronaut's Journey to the Moon,[20] as well as the foreword to the 2010 book Footprints in the Dust: The Epic Voyages of Apollo, 1969–1975, edited by Colin Burgess.[21]
Technical papers
Gordon following his Apollo 12 flight

    Gordon, R. F., F4H-1 Navy Preliminary Evaluation, Phase I, NAS Patuxent River, Maryland, September 1958.
    Gordon, R. F., F4H-1 Navy Preliminary Evaluation, Phase I Supplement, October 1958.
    Gordon, R. F., FJ-4B Fuel Consumption and Performance Report, Flight Test, NAS Patuxent River, Maryland, 1958.
    Gordon, R. F., F11F Fuel Consumption and Performance Report, Flight Test, NAS Patuxent River, Maryland, 1958.
    Gordon, R. F., Revised Roll Performance Requirements for MIL-SPEC-F-8785. All Aircraft in Configuration PA, Flight Test, NAS Patuxent River, Maryland, 1958.
    Gordon, R. F., F8U Spin Evaluation Report, Flight Test, NAS Patuxent River, Maryland, 1959.
    Gordon, R. F., Gemini XI, Gemini Program Mission Report, NASA Manned Spacecraft Center Report, October 1966.
    Gordon, R. F., Apollo XII Mission Report, NASA Manned Spacecraft Center Report, December 1969.

The BSA launched the Space Exploration merit badge in 1965.

    Since then, over 420,000 badges have been earned by Scouts.
    The requirements for earning this badge may include:
        building, launching, and recovering a model rocket
        designing an earth-orbiting space station
        learning how satellites stay in orbit
        and more…(See www.scouting.org for exact requirements.)

NASA provides students, particularly Scouts, with many opportunities.

    Ideas and information for Cub Scout achievements can be found at: http://spaceplace.jpl.nasa.gov/en/kids/cubscouts
    Ideas and information for Boy Scout achievements can be found at:
    http://genesismission.jpl.nasa.gov/product/community/scout_overview.html

The National Aeronautic and Space Administration selected the first group of
astronauts in 1959.

    Of the 320 pilots and scientists selected since 1959, 181 were in Scouting.
    Of the 12 men to walk on the moon, 11 were Scouts.

Alphabetical Listing of Astronauts Who Were Scouts
Includes highest rank earned, NASA flight experience, and hometown.
(c, current astronaut; f, former astronaut; d, deceased)
Source: NASA 2005 Fact Book

Richard R. Arnold, c
Webelos
STS-119
Bowie, Maryland
    

James P. Bagian, M.D., P.E., f
Eagle Scout
STS-29, STS-40
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
    

Michael A. Baker, c
Life Scout
STS-43, STS-52, STS-68, STS-81
Lemoore, California

Michael R. Barratt, M.D., c
Explorer
Soyuz TMA-14, ISS, STS-71
Vancouver, Washington
    

Daniel T. Barry, M.D., Ph.D., f
Star Scout
STS-72, STS-96, STS-105
South Hadley, Massachussets
    

Charles A. Bassett II, d
Life Scout
Dayton, Ohio

Alan L. Bean, f
First Class Scout
Apollo 12, lunar surface, Skylab 3
Houston, Texas
    

Michael J. Bloomfield, f
First Class Scout
STS-86, STS-97, STS-110
Lake Fenton, Michigan
    

Guion S. Bluford Jr., f
Eagle Scout Scout
STS-8, STS 61-A, STS-39, STS-53
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Charles F. Bolden Jr., c
Second Class Scout
STS-61-C, STS-31, STS-45, STS-60
Columbia, South Carolina
    

Kenneth D. Bowersox, f
Eagle Scout
STS-50, STS-73, STS-82, STS-113, ISS, Soyuz TMA-1
Bedford, Indiana
    

Charles E. Brady Jr., d
Eagle Scout
STS-78
Pinehurst, North Carolina

Vance D. Brand, f
Life Scout
Apollo-Soyuz, STS-5, STS-41B, STS-35
Longmont, Colorado
    

Roy D. Bridges Jr., f
Life Scout
STS-51F
Williamsburg, Virginia
    

David M. Brown, d
Life Scout
STS-107 (Columbia)
Arlington, Virginia

Curtis L. Brown Jr., f
Cub Scout
STS-47, STS-66, STS-77, STS-85, STS-95, STS-103
Elizabethtown, North Carolina
    

James F. Buchli, f
Second Class Scout
STS-51C, STS-61A, STS-29, STS-48
Fargo, North Dakota
    

John S. Bull, d
Rank Unknown
Memphis, Tennessee

Daniel C. Burbank, c
Cub Scout
STS-106
Yarmouthport, Massachussets
    

Daniel W. Bursch, f
Tenderfoot Scout
STS-51, STS-68, STS-77, STS-108, ISS, STS-111
Vestal, New York
    

Charles J. Camarda, c
First Class Scout
STS-114
Ozone Park, Queens,
New York

Kenneth D. Cameron, f
Star Scout
STS-37, STS-56, STS-74
Rocky River, Ohio
    

Duane G. “Digger” Carey, f
Cub Scout
STS-109
St. Paul, Minnesota
    

Scott Carpenter, f
Second Class Scout
Aurora 7
Boulder, Colorado

Gerald P. Carr, f
Eagle Scout
Skylab 4
Santa Ana, California
    

Manley Lanier “Sonny” Carter Jr., d
Eagle Scout
STS-33
Warner Robins, Georgia
    

John H. Casper, c
Life Scout
STS-36, STS-54, STS-62, STS-77
Gainesville, Georgia

Eugena A. Cernan, f
Second Class Scout
Gemini IX, Apollo 10, Apollo 17, lunar surface
Maywood, Illinois
    

Roger B. Chaffee, d
Eagle Scout
Grand Rapid, Michigan
    

Gregory Errol Chamitoff, Ph.D., c
Eagle Scout
Expedition 17-18 ISS, STS-124, STS-126
Montreal, Canada

Michael R. “Rich” Clifford, f
First Class Scout
STS-53, STS-59, STS-76
Ogden, Utah
    

Michael L. Coats, f
First Class Scout
STS 41-D. STS-29, STS-39
Riverside, California
    

Charles Conrad Jr., d
Cub Scout
Gemini V, Gemini XI, Apollo XII, Skylab II
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

L. Gordon Cooper Jr., d
Life Scout Scout
Faith 7, Gemini 5
Ventura, California
    

Richard O. Covey, f
Eagle Scout
STS 51-I, STS-26, STS-38, STS-61
Fort Walton Beach, Florida
    

John O. Creighton, f
Eagle Scout
STS-51G, STS-36, STS-48
Seattle, Washington

Frank L. Culbertson Jr., f
Second Class Scout
STS-38, STS-51, STS-105, ISS, STS-108
Holly Hill, South Carolina
    

Benjamin Alvin Drew Jr., c
Webelos
STS-118
Washington, D.C.
    

Brian Duffy, f
Cub Scout
STS-45, STS-57, STS-72, STS-92
Rockland, Massachussets

Charles M. Duke Jr., f
Eagle Scout
Apollo 16, lunar surface
Charlotte, North Carolina
    

James P. Dutton Jr., c
Cub Scout
assigned to STS-131
Eugene, Oregon
    

Donn F. Eisele, d
Eagle Scout
Apollo VII
Columbus, Ohio

Anthony W. England, Ph.D, f
Star Scout
STS-51F
West Fargo, North Dakota
    

Joe H. Engle, f
First Class Scout
STS-51I
Dickinson County, Kansas
    

Ronald E. Evans, d
Life Scout
Apollo 17
Scottsdale, Arizona

John M. Fabian, f
Life Scout
STS-7, STS-51G
Pullman, Washington
    

C. Michael Faole, Ph.D., c
Wolf Scout (equivalent to Cub Scout)
STS-45, STS-63, STS-84, Mir, STS-86, STS-103, Soyuz TMA-3, ISS
Cambridge, England
    

Edward M. “Mike” Fincke, c
Webelos
ISS Expedition 9, Soyuz TMA-4
Emsworth, Pennsylvania

William F. Fisher, M.D., f
Star Scout
STS-51I
Webster, Texas
    

Kevin A. Ford, c
Webelos
Montpelier, Indiana
    

Michael J. Foreman,  c
First Class Scout
STS-123
Wadsworth, Ohio

Patrick G. Forrester, c
Eagle Scout
STS-105, STS-117, STS-128
Springfield, Virginia
    

Michael E. Fossum, c
Eagle Scout
STS-121, STS-124
McAllen, Texas
    

Theodore C. Freeman,  d
First Class Scout
Haverford, Pennsylvania

C. Gordon Fullerton, f
Eagle Scout
STS-3, STS-3, STS-51F
Portland, Oregon
    

Ronald J. Garan Jr., c
Tenderfoot Scout
STS-124
Yonkers, New York
    

Dale A. Gardner, f
First Class Scout
STS-8, STS-51A
Clinton, Iowa

Guy S. Gardner, f
Life Scout
STS-27, STS-35
Alexandria, Virginia
    

Owen K. Garriott, Ph.D., f
Star Scout
Skylab, Spacelab
Enid, Oklahoma
    

Michael L. Gernhardt, Ph.D., c
Cub Scout
STS-69, STS-83, STS-104
Mansfield, Ohio

Robert L. Gibson, f
Star Scout
STS 41-B, STS 61-C, STS-27, STS-47, STS-71
Lakewood, California
    

Edward G. Gibson, Ph.D., f
First Class Scout
Skylab 4
Buffalo, New York
    

Edward G. Givens Jr., d
Life Scout
Quanah, Texas

Richard F. Gordon Jr., f
Star Scout
Gemini XI, Apollo 12
Seattle, Washington
    

Dominic L. Pudwill Gorie, c
Webelos
STS-91, STS-99, STS-108, STS-123
Miami, Florida
    

Frederick D. Gregory, f
Life Scout
STS-51B, STS-33, STS-44
Washington, D.C.

William G. Gregory, f
Eagle Scout
STS-67
Lockport, New York
    

S. David Griggs, d
Eagle Scout
STS-51D
Portland, Oregon
    

Virgil I. Grissom, d
Star Scout
Liberty Bell 7, first
manned Gemini flight
Mitchell, Indiana

Chris Austin Hadfield, c
Cub Scout
STS-74, STS-100, ISS
Sarnia Ontario, Canada
    

Fred W. Haise Jr., f
Star Scout
Apollo 13
Biloxi, Mississippi
    

L. Blaine Hammond Jr., f
First Class Scout
STS-39, STS-64
St. Louis, Missouri

Bernard A. Harris Jr., M.D., f
Rank Unknown
STS-55, STS-63
San Antonio, Texas
    

Steven A. Hawley, Ph.D., f
Tenderfoot Scout
STS-41D, STS-61C, STS-31, STS-82, STS-93
Salina, Kansas
    

S. Karl G. Henize, Ph.D., d
First Class Scout
STS-51F
Cincinnati, Ohio

Terence T. “Tom” Henricks, f
Cub Scout
STS-44, STS-55, STS-70, STS-78
Woodville, Ohio
    

John Bennett Herrington, f
Second Class Scout
STS-113
Plano, Texas
    

Charles O. Hobaugh, c
Cub Scout
STS-104, STS-118
North Ridgeville, Ohio

Jeffrey A. Hoffman, Ph.D., f
Eagle Scout
STS 51-D, STS-35, STS-46, STS-61, STS-75
Scarsdale, New York
    

Rick Douglas Husband, d
Second Class Scout
STS-96, STS-107(Columbia)
Amarillo, Texas
    

Gregory H. Johnson, c
Eagle Scout
STS-123
Fairborn, Ohio

Thomas D. Jones, Ph.D., f
Eagle Scout
STS-59, STS-68, STS-80, STS-98
Essex, Maryland
    

James M. Kelly, c
Webelos
STS-102, STS-114
Burlington, Ohio
    

Mark F. Kelly, c
Cub Scout
STS-108, STS-121, STS-124
West Orange, New Jersey

Scott J. Kelly, c
Cub Scout
STS-103, STS-118
West Orange, New Jersey
    

Timothy L. Kopra, c
Tenderfoot Scout
STS-127, STS-128, ISS
Austin, Texas
    

Kevin R. Kregel, f
Life Scout
STS-70, STS-78, STS-87, STS-99
Amityville, New York

Mark C. Lee, f
Eagle Scout
STS-30, STS-47, STS-64, STS-82
Viroqua, Wisconsin
    

David C. Leestma, c
Cub Scout
STS-41G, STS-28, STS-45
Tustin, California
    

Don L. Lind, Ph.D., f
Eagle Scout
STS-51B
Sandy, Utah

Steven W. Lindsey, c
Eagle Scout
STS-87, STS-95, STS-104, STS-121
Temple City, California
    

Richard M. Linnehan, c
First Class Scout
STS-78, STS-90,
STS-109, STS-123
Pelham, New Hampshire
    

John A. Llewellyn, Ph.D., f

King’s Scout (equivalent to Eagle Scout)
Cardiff, Wales, U.K.

Michael E. Lopez-Alegria, c
Cub Scout
STS-73, STS-92, MS-1, STS-113, Soyuz TMA-9, ISS
Mission Viejo, California
    

Christopher J. “Gus” Loria, f
Webelos
League City, Texas
    

John M. “Mike” Lounge, f
Star Scout
STS-51I, STS-26, STS-35
Burlington, Colorado

Jack Robert Lousma, f
Tenderfoot Scout
Skylab 3, STS-3
Ann Arbor, Michigan
    

Stanley G. Love, Ph.D.,  c
Tenderfoot Scout
STS-122
Eugene, Oregon
    

James A. Lovell Jr., f
Eagle Scout
Gemini 7, Gemini 12, Apollo 8, Apollo 13
Cleveland, Ohio

G. David Low, d
Life Scout
STS-32, STS-43, STS-57
McLean, Virginia
    

Thomas H. Marshburn, M.D., c
Star Scout
Atlanta, Georgia
    

Michael J. Massimino, Ph.D, c
Webelos
STS-109, STS-125
Franklin Square, New York

Thomas K. Mattingly II, f
Life Scout
Apollo 16, STS-4, STS-51C
Miami, Florida
    

William S. McArthur Jr., c
Life Scout
STS-58, STS-76, STS-74, STS-92, Soyuz TMA, ISS
Wakulla, North Carolina
    

Jon A. McBride, f
Cub Scout
STS 41-G
Beckley, West Virginia

William C. McCool, d
Eagle Scout
STS-107 (Columbia)
Lubbock, Texas
    

Michael J. McCulley, f
Eagle Scout
STS-34
Livingston, Tennessee
    

James A. Jr McDivitt, f
Tenderfoot Scout
Gemini 4, Apollo 9
Chicago, Illinois

Ronald E. McNair, Ph.D., d
Star Scout
STS 41-B, STS 51-L(Challenger)
Lake City, South Carolina
    

Carl J. Meade, f
Cub Scout
STS-38, STS-50, STS-64
Chanute AFB, Illinois
    

F. Curtis Michel, f
Tenderfoot Scout
Sacramento, California

Edgar D. Mitchell, f
Life Scout
Apollo 14, lunar surface
Hereford, Texas
    

Lee M. E. Morin, M.D., Ph.D, c
Rank Unknown
STS-110
Hudson, Ohio
    

Richard M. Mullane, f
Second Class Scout
STS-41D, STS-27, STS-36
Albuquerque, New Mexico

Story Musgrave, M.D., f
Cub Scout
STS-6, STS-51F/Spacelab 2, STS-33, STS-44, STS-61, STS-80
Lexington, Kentucky
    

George D. “Pinky” Nelson, Ph.D., f
First Class Scout
STS-41C, STS-61C,
STS-26
Charles City, Iowa
    

Soichi Noguchi, c
Star Scout
STS-114
Yokohama, Japan

Carlos I. Noriega, c
Webelos
STS-84, STS-97
Santa Clara, California
    

Bryan D. O’Connor, c
Explorer
STS-61B, STS-40
Twentynine Palms, California
    

William A. Oefelein, f
First Class Scout
STS-116
Anchorage, Alaska

Brian T. O’Leary, f
Eagle Scout
Boston, Massachussets
    

John D. Olivas, Ph.D., P.E., c
Webelos
STS-117, STS-128
El Paso, Texas
    

Ellison S. Onizuka, d
Eagle Scout
STS-51C, STS-51L
(Challenger)
Kealakekua, Kona, Hawaii

Stephen S. Oswald, f
Eagle Scout
STS-42, STS-56, STS-67
Bellingham, Washington
    

Robert F. Overmyer, d
First Class Scout
STS-5, STS-51B
Westlake, Ohio
    

Scott E. Parazynski, M.D., f
Eagle Scout
STS-66, STS-86, STS-95, STS-100, STS-120
Little Rock, Arkansas

Robert A. R. Parker, Ph.D., f
Second Class Scout
STS-9/Spacelab 1, STS-35
Shrewsbury, Massachussets
    

Donald R. Pettit, Ph.D., c
Eagle Scout
ISS, STS-113, STS-126
Silverton, Oregon
    

John L. Phillips, Ph.D., c
Cub Scout
STS-100, ISS, STS-114, STS-119
Scottsdale, Arizona

William R. Pogue, f
Second Class Scout
Skylab 4
Okemah, Oklahoma
    

Alan G. Poindexer, c
Life Scout
STS-122, STS-122
Rockville, Maryland
    

Mark Lewis Polansky, c
Rank Unknown
STS-98, STS-116, STS-127
Paterson, New York

William F. Readdy, f
Cub Scout
STS-42, STS-51, STS-79
McLean, Virginia
    

Kenneth S. Reightler Jr., f
Eagle Scout
STS-48, STS-60
Virginia Beach, Virginia
    

James F. Reilly II, Ph.D., f
First Class Scout
STS-89, STS-104, STS-117
Mesquite, Texas

Paul William Richards, c
Tenderfoot Scout
STS-102
Dunmore, Pennsylvania
    

Stephen K. Robinson, Ph.D., c
Life Scout
STS-85, STS-95, STS-114
Moraga, California
    

Kent V. Rominger, f
Cub Scout
STS-73, STS-80, STS-85, STS-96, STS-100
Del Norte, Colorado

Walter M. Schirra, d
First Class Scout
Sigma 7 Mercury, Gemini 6, Apollo VII
Hackensack, New York
    

Harrison M. Schmitt, Ph.D., f
Tenderfoot Scout
Apollo 17, lunar surface
Silver City, New Mexico
    

Russell L. Schweickart, f
First Class Scout
Apollo 9, lunar surface
Neptune, New Jersey

David R. Scott, f
Life Scout
Gemini 8, Apollo 9, Apollo 15, lunar surface
Washington, D.C.
    

Winston E. Scott, f
First Class Scout
STS-72, STS-87
Coral Gables, Florida
    

Richard A. Searfoss, f
Eagle Scout
STS-58, STS-76
Portsmouth, New Hampshire

Elliot M. See Jr., d
Eagle Scout
Dallas, Texas
    

Piers J. Sellers, Ph.D., c
Wolf Scout (equivalent to Cub Scout)
STS-112, STS-121
Cranbrook, Kent, U.K.
    

Alan B. Shepard Jr., d
First Class Scout
Freedom 7, Apollo 14, lunar surface
East Derry, New Jersey

William M. Shepherd, f
Cub Scout
STS-27, STS-41, STS-52, Expedition 1, ISS
Babylon, New York
    

Loren J. Shriver, f
Second Class Scout
STS-51C, STS-31, STS-46
Paton, Iowa
    

Steven L. Smith, c
Tenderfoot Scout
STS-68, STS-82, STS-103, STS-110
San Jose, California

Sherwood C. “Woody” Spring, f
Life Scout
STS-61B
Harmony, Rhode Island
    

Robert C. Springer, f
Life Scout
STS-29, STS-38
Ashland, Ohio
    

Thomas P. Stafford, f Star Scout
Gemini VI, Gemini IX, Apollo 10, Apollo-Soyuz Test Project
Weatherford, Oklahoma

John L. Swigert Jr., d
Second Class Scout
Apollo 7, Apollo 13
Denver, Colorado
    

Joseph R. “Joe” Tanner, f
Eagle Scout
STS-66, STS-82, STS-97, STS-115
Danville, Illinois
    

Andrew S. W. Thomas, Ph.D., c
Cub Scout
STS-77, STS-89, ISS, STS-91, STS-102, STS-114

William E. Thornton, M.D., f
Second Class Scout
STS-8, STS-51B/Spacelab
3 Faison, North Carolina
    

Pierre J. Thuot, f
Cub Scout
STS-36, STS-49, STS-62
Fairfax, Virginia
    

Richard H. Truly, f
Eagle Scout
STS-2, STS-8
Fayette, Mississippi

James D. A. “Ox” van Hoften, f
Life Scout
STS-41C, STS-51I
Burlingame, California
    

Charles L. Veach, d
First Class Scout
STS-39, STS-52
Honolulu, Hawaii
    

James S. Voss, f
Rank Unknown
STS-44, STS-53, STS-69, STS-101, STS-102, ISS, STS-105
Opelika, Alaska

David M. Walker, d
Eagle Scout
STS-51A, STS-30, STS-53, STS-69
Columbus, Georgia
    

Edward H. White II, d
Second Class Scout
Gemini 4
San Antonio, Texas
    

Donald E. Williams, f
Explorer
STS-51D, STS-34
Otterbein, Indiana

Jeffrey N. Williams, c
Star Scout
STS-101, Soyuz TMA 8, ISS
Winter, Wisconsin
    

Clifton C. Williams Jr., d
Life Scout
Mobile, Alaska
    

Dafydd Rhys “Dave” Williams, M.D., c
Cub Scout
STS-90, STS-118
Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada

David A. Wolf, BSEE, M.D., c
Cub Scout
STS-112, STS-86, MIR, STS-89, STS-58
Indianapolis, Indiana
    

Neil W. Woodward III, f
Second Class Scout
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
    

Alfred Merrill Worden, f
First Class Scout
Apollo 15
Jackson, Michigan

John W. Young, f
Second Class Scout
Gemini 3, Gemini 10, Apollo 10, Apollo 16, lunar surface, STS-1, STS-9
Orlando, Florida
    

 
    

RICHARD F. GORDON, JR. (CAPTAIN, USN, RET.)
NASA ASTRONAUT (DECEASED)
PERSONAL DATA: Born October 5, 1929, in Seattle, Washington. Died on November
6, 2017. He is survived by his wife, five children and two stepchildren.
EDUCATION: Graduated from North Kitsap High School, Poulsbo, Washington;
received a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry from the University of Washington in
1951.
ORGANIZATIONS: Fellow, American Astronautical Society; Associate Fellow, Society
of Experimental Test Pilots and Navy League.
SPECIAL HONORS: Awarded the NASA Distinguished Service Medal, NASA
Exceptional Service Medal, two Navy Distinguished Flying Crosses, Navy Astronaut
Wings, the Navy distinguished Service Medal, Institute of Navigation Award for 1969,
Godfrey L. Cabot Award in 1970, the Rear Admiral William S. Parsons Award for
Scientific and Technical Progress, 1970; Phi Sigma Kappa Merit Award, 1966; NASA MSC Superior Achievement Award;
NASA Group Achievement Award; FAI Record.1961 (Transcontinental Speed Record); and FAI World Record (Altitude Record,
Gemini XI).
COMMUNITY ACTIVITIES: Gordon has served as Chairman and co-Chairman of the Louisiana Heart Fund, Chairman of the
March of Dimes (Mother’s March), Honorary Chairman for Muscular Dystrophy, and Board of Directors for the Boy Scouts of
America and Boys’ Club of Greater New Orleans.
TECHNICAL PAPERS: Gordon, R. F., F4H-1 NAVY PRELIMINARY EVALUATION, Phase I, NAS Patuxent River,
Maryland, September 1958.
Gordon, R. F., F4H-1 NAVY PRELIMINARY EVALUATION, Phase I Supplement, October 1958
Gordon, R. F., FJ-4B FUEL CONSUMPTION AND PERFORMANCE REPORT, Flight Test, NAS Patuxent River, Maryland,
1958.
Gordon, R. F., F11F FUEL CONSUMPTION AND PERFORMANCE REPORT, Flight Test, NAS Patuxent River, Maryland,
1958.
Gordon, R. F., REVISED ROLL PERFORMANCE REQUIREMENTS FOR MIL-SPEC-F-8785. All Aircraft in Configuration PA,
Flight Test, NAS Patuxent River, Maryland, 1958.
Gordon, R. F., F8U SPIN EVALUATION REPORT, Flight Test, NAS Patuxent River, Maryland, 1959.
Gordon, R. F., GEMINI XI, GEMINI PROGRAM MISSION REPORT, NASA Manned Spacecraft Center Report, October 1966.
Gordon, R. F., APOLLO XII MISSION REPORT, NASA Manned Spacecraft Center Report, December 1969.
EXPERIENCE: Gordon, a Navy Captain, received his wings as a naval aviator in 1953. He then attended All-Weather Flight
School and jet transitional training and was subsequently assigned to an all-weather fighter squadron at the Naval Air Station at
Jacksonville, Florida.
In 1957, he attended the Navy's Test Pilot School at Patuxent River, Maryland, and served as a flight test pilot until 1960. During
this tour of duty, he did flight test work on the F8U Crusader, F11F Tigercat, FJ Fury, and A4D Skyhawk, and was the first project
test pilot for the F4H Phantom II. He served with Fighter Squadron 121 at the Miramar, California, Naval Air Station as a flight
instructor in the F4H and participated in the introduction of that aircraft to the Atlantic and Pacific fleets. He was also flight safety
officer, assistant operations officer, and ground training officer for Fighter Squadron 96 at Miramar.
National Aeronautics and
Space Administration
November 2017
Biographical Data
Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center
Houston, Texas 77058Winner of the Bendix Trophy Race from Los Angeles to New York in May 1961, he established a new speed record of 869.74
miles per hour and a transcontinental speed record of 2 hours and 47 minutes.
He was also a student at the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School at Monterey, California.
He logged more that 4,500 hours flying time--3,500 hours in jet aircraft.
NASA EXPERIENCE: Captain Gordon was one of the third group of astronauts named by NASA in October 1963. He served as
backup pilot for the Gemini 8 flight.
On September 12, 1966, he served as pilot for the 3-day Gemini XI mission--on which rendezvous with an Agena was achieved in
less than one orbit. He executed docking maneuvers with the previously launched Agena and performed two periods of
extravehicular activity which included attaching a tether to the Agena and retrieving a nuclear emulsion experiment package. Other
highlights accomplished by Gordon and command pilot Charles Conrad on this flight included the successful completion of the first
tethered station-keeping exercise, establishment of a new altitude record of 850 miles, and completion of the first fully automatic
controlled reentry. The flight was concluded on September 15, 1966, with the spacecraft landing in the Atlantic--2 1/2 miles from
the prime recovery ship USS GUAM.
Gordon was subsequently assigned as backup command pilot for Apollo 9.
He occupied the command module pilot seat on Apollo 12, November 14-24, 1969. Other crewmen on man's second lunar landing
mission were Charles Conrad, spacecraft commander, and Alan L. Bean, lunar module pilot. Throughout the 31-hour lunar surface
stay by Conrad and Bean, Gordon remained in lunar orbit aboard the command module, "Yankee Clipper," obtaining desired
mapping photographs of tentative landing sites for future missions. He also performed the final re-docking maneuvers following
the successful lunar orbit rendezvous which was initiated by Conrad and Bean from within "Intrepid" after their ascent from the
moon's surface.
All of the mission's objectives were accomplished and Apollo 12 achievements include: The first precision lunar landing with
"Intrepid's" touchdown in the moon's Ocean of Storms; the first lunar traverse by Conrad and Bean as they deployed the Apollo
Lunar Surface Experiment Package (ALSEP), installed a nuclear power generator station to provide the power source for these
long-term scientific experiments, gathered samples of the lunar surface for return to earth, and completed a close up inspection of
the Surveyor III spacecraft.
The Apollo 12 mission lasted 244 hours and 36 minutes and was concluded with a Pacific spashdown and subsequent recovery
operations by the USS HORNET.
Captain Gordon has completed two space flights, logging a total of 315 hours and 53 minutes in space--2 hours and 44 minutes of
which were spent in EVA.
He served as backup spacecraft commander for Apollo 15.
Captain Gordon retired from NASA and the USN in January 1972.
He served as Executive Vice President of the New Orleans Saints Professional Football Club in the National Football League
(1972); was General Manager of Energy Developers, Limited (EDL), a Texas Partnership involved in a joint venture with Rocket
Research Corporation for the development of a liquid chemical explosive for use in the oil and gas industry (1977); President of
Resolution Engineering and Development Company (REDCO) which provided design and operational requirements for wild oil
well control and fire fighting equipment onboard large semi-submersible utility vessels (1978); following REDCO merger with
Amarco Resources, Gordon assumed the additional duties of Vice President of Marketing, Westdale, an oil well servicing
subsidiary of AMARCO operating in North Central Texas and Oklahoma, and also served as Vice President for Operations, Texas
Division (1980); served as Director, Scott Science and Technology, Inc., Los Angeles Division (1981-1983). In March 1982 he
became President of Astro Sciences Corporation. This company provides a range of services including engineering, project
management, project field support teams, to software and hardware system design for control room applications. In the Summer of
1984, Gordon was a Technical Advisor for and played the part of “Capcom” in the CBS mini-series ‘Space’ by James A. Michener.
This is the only version available from NASA. Updates must be sought direct from the above named individual

 Richard Gordon was an American astronaut who walked in space during the Gemini 11 mission and orbited the Moon on Apollo 12.

 

Gordon received a BS from the University of Washington in 1951 before entering the United States Navy and serving as a flight test pilot. In 1960 he joined Fighter Squadron 121 at the Miramar, California Naval Air Station as a flight instructor and won the Bendix Trophy Race from Los Angeles to New York in May 1961, setting a new speed record of 1,399 kilometers per hour and a transcontinental record of 2 hours 47 minutes. He was selected as an astronaut in 1963 and made his first spaceflight as pilot alongside Charles Conrad on the three-day Gemini 11 mission in 1966. Gordon and Conrad served together again in 1969 aboard Apollo 12, with Gordon as Command Module pilot. In 1971, Gordon became chief of advanced programs for the Astronaut Office and worked on design and testing of the Space Shuttle and development equipment.

Apollo 12 (November 14–24, 1969) was the sixth crewed flight in the United States Apollo program and the second to land on the Moon. It was launched on November 14, 1969, by NASA from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida. Commander Charles "Pete" Conrad and Lunar Module Pilot Alan L. Bean performed just over one day and seven hours of lunar surface activity while Command Module Pilot Richard F. Gordon remained in lunar orbit.

Apollo 12 would have attempted the first lunar landing had Apollo 11 failed, but after the success of Neil Armstrong's mission, Apollo 12 was postponed by two months, and other Apollo missions also put on a more relaxed schedule. More time was allotted for geologic training in preparation for Apollo 12 than for Apollo 11, Conrad and Bean making several geology field trips in preparation for their mission. Apollo 12's spacecraft and launch vehicle were almost identical to Apollo 11's. One addition was hammocks to allow Conrad and Bean to rest more comfortably on the Moon.

Shortly after being launched on a rainy day at Kennedy Space Center, Apollo 12 was twice struck by lightning, causing instrumentation problems but little damage. Switching to the auxiliary power supply resolved the data relay problem, saving the mission. The outward journey to the Moon otherwise saw few problems. On November 19, Conrad and Bean achieved a precise landing at their expected location within walking distance of the Surveyor 3 robotic probe, which had landed on April 20, 1967. In making a pinpoint landing, they showed that NASA could plan future missions in the expectation that astronauts could land close to sites of scientific interest. Conrad and Bean carried the Apollo Lunar Surface Experiments Package, a group of nuclear-powered scientific instruments, as well as the first color television camera taken by an Apollo mission to the lunar surface, but transmission was lost after Bean accidentally pointed the camera at the Sun and its sensor was burned out. On the second of two moonwalks, they visited Surveyor 3 and removed parts for return to Earth.

Lunar Module Intrepid lifted off from the Moon on November 20 and docked with the command module, which subsequently traveled back to Earth. The Apollo 12 mission ended on November 24 with a successful splashdown.
Crew and key Mission Control personnel
Position     Astronaut
Commander     Charles "Pete" Conrad Jr.
Third spaceflight
Command Module Pilot     Richard F. Gordon Jr.
Second and last spaceflight
Lunar Module Pilot     Alan L. Bean
First spaceflight

The commander of the all-Navy Apollo 12 crew was Charles "Pete" Conrad, who was 39 years old at the time of the mission. After receiving a bachelor's degree in aeronautical engineering from Princeton University in 1953, he became a naval aviator, and completed United States Naval Test Pilot School at Patuxent River Naval Air Station. He was selected in the second group of astronauts in 1962, and flew on Gemini 5 in 1965, and as command pilot of Gemini 11 in 1966. Command Module Pilot Richard "Dick" Gordon, 40 years old at the time of Apollo 12, also became a naval aviator in 1953, following graduation from the University of Washington with a degree in chemistry, and completed test pilot school at Patuxent River. Selected as a Group 3 astronaut in 1963, he flew with Conrad on Gemini 11.[6][7]

The original Lunar Module pilot assigned to work with Conrad was Clifton C. Williams Jr., who was killed in October 1967 when the T-38 he was flying crashed near Tallahassee. When forming his crew, Conrad had wanted Alan L. Bean, a former student of his at the test pilot school, but had been told by Director of Flight Crew Operations Deke Slayton that Bean was unavailable due to an assignment to the Apollo Applications Program. After Williams's death, Conrad asked for Bean again, and this time Slayton yielded.[8] Bean, 37 years old when the mission flew, had graduated from the University of Texas in 1955 with a degree in aeronautical engineering. Also a naval aviator, he was selected alongside Gordon in 1963, and first flew in space on Apollo 12.[6][9] The three Apollo 12 crew members had backed up Apollo 9 earlier in 1969.[10]

The Apollo 12 backup crew was David R. Scott as commander, Alfred M. Worden as Command Module pilot, and James B. Irwin as Lunar Module pilot. They became the crew of Apollo 15.[11] For Apollo, a third crew of astronauts, known as the support crew, was designated in addition to the prime and backup crews used on projects Mercury and Gemini. Slayton created the support crews because James McDivitt, who would command Apollo 9, believed that, with preparation going on in facilities across the US, meetings that needed a member of the flight crew would be missed. Support crew members were to assist as directed by the mission commander.[12] Usually low in seniority, they assembled the mission's rules, flight plan, and checklists, and kept them updated;[13][14] For Apollo 12, they were Gerald P. Carr, Edward G. Gibson and Paul J. Weitz.[15] Flight directors were Gerry Griffin, first shift, Pete Frank, second shift, Clifford E. Charlesworth, third shift, and Milton Windler, fourth shift.[16] Flight directors during Apollo had a one-sentence job description, "The flight director may take any actions necessary for crew safety and mission success."[17] Capsule communicators (CAPCOMs) were Scott, Worden, Irwin, Carr, Gibson, Weitz and Don Lind.[18]
Preparation
Site selection

The landing site selection process for Apollo 12 was greatly informed by the site selection for Apollo 11. There were rigid standards for the possible Apollo 11 landing sites, in which scientific interest was not a major factor: they had to be close to the lunar equator and not on the periphery of the portion of the lunar surface visible from Earth; they had to be relatively flat and without major obstructions along the path the Lunar Module (LM) would fly to reach them, their suitability confirmed by photographs from Lunar Orbiter probes. Also desirable was the presence of another suitable site further west in case the mission was delayed, and the sun would have risen too high in the sky at the original site for desired lighting conditions. The need for three days to recycle if a launch had to be scrubbed meant that only three of the five suitable sites found were designated as potential landing sites for Apollo 11, of which the Apollo 11 landing site in the Sea of Tranquility was the easternmost. Since Apollo 12 was to attempt the first lunar landing if Apollo 11 failed, both sets of astronauts trained for the same sites.[19]

With the success of Apollo 11, it was initially contemplated that Apollo 12 would land at the site next further west from the Sea of Tranquility, in Sinus Medii. However, NASA planning coordinator Jack Sevier and engineers at the Manned Spaceflight Center at Houston argued for a landing close enough to the crater in which the Surveyor 3 probe had landed in 1967 to allow the astronauts to cut parts from it for return to Earth. The site was otherwise suitable and had scientific interest. Given that Apollo 11 had landed several miles off-target, though, some NASA administrators feared Apollo 12 would land far enough away that the astronauts could not reach the probe, and the agency would be embarrassed. Nevertheless, the ability to perform pinpoint landings was essential if Apollo's exploration program was to be carried out, and on July 25, 1969, Apollo Program Manager Samuel Phillips designated what became known as Surveyor crater as the landing site, despite the unanimous opposition of members of two site selection boards.[20][21]
Training and preparation
Conrad and Bean rehearse their lunar surface activities before the mission

The Apollo 12 astronauts spent five hours in mission-specific training for every hour they expected to spend in flight on the mission, a total exceeding 1,000 hours per crew member.[22] Conrad and Bean received more mission-specific training than Apollo 11's Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin had.[23] This was in addition to the 1,500 hours of training they received as backup crew members for Apollo 9. The Apollo 12 training included over 400 hours per crew member in simulators of the Command Module (CM) and of the LM. Some of the simulations were linked in real time to flight controllers in Mission Control. To practice landing on the Moon, Conrad flew the Lunar Landing Training Vehicle (LLTV),[22] training in which continued to be authorized even though Armstrong had been forced to bail out of a similar vehicle in 1968, just before it crashed.[24]

Soon after being assigned as Apollo 12 crew commander, Conrad met with NASA geologists and told them that the training for lunar surface activities would be conducted much as Apollo 11's, but there was to be no publicity or involvement by the media. Conrad felt he had been abused by the press during Gemini, and the sole Apollo 11 geology field trip had turned into a near-fiasco, with a large media contingent present, some getting in the way—the astronauts had trouble hearing each other due to a hovering press helicopter. After the successful return of Apollo 11 in July 1969, more time was allotted for geology, but the astronauts' focus was in getting time in the simulators without being pre-empted by the Apollo 11 crew. On the six Apollo 12 geology field trips, the astronauts would practice as if on the Moon, collecting samples and documenting them with photographs, while communicating with a CAPCOM and geologists who were out of sight in a nearby tent. Afterwards, the astronauts' performance in choosing samples and taking photographs would be critiqued. To the frustration of the astronauts, the scientists kept changing the photo documentation procedures; after the fourth or fifth such change, Conrad required that there be no more.[25] After the return of Apollo 11, the Apollo 12 crew was able to view the lunar samples, and be briefed on them by scientists.[26]
Conrad and Bean in the LM simulator

As Apollo 11 was targeted for an ellipse-shaped landing zone, rather than at a specific point, there was no planning for geology traverses, the designated tasks to be done at sites of the crew's choosing. For Apollo 12, before the mission, some of NASA's geology team met with the crew and Conrad suggested they lay out possible routes for him and Bean. The result was four traverses, based on four potential landing points for the LM. This was the start of geology traverse planning that on later missions became a considerable effort involving several organizations.[27]

The stages of the lunar module, LM–6, were delivered to Kennedy Space Center (KSC) on March 24, 1969, and were mated to each other on April 28. Command module CM–108 and service module SM–108 were delivered to KSC on March 28, and were mated to each other on April 21. Following installation of gear and testing, the launch vehicle, with the spacecraft atop it, was rolled out to Launch Complex 39A on September 8, 1969.[28] The training schedule was complete, as planned, by November 1, 1969; activities after that date were intended as refreshers. The crew members felt that the training, for the most part, was adequate preparation for the Moon mission.[29]
Hardware
Launch vehicle
SA-507 en route to the launch pad, September 1969

There were no significant changes to the Saturn V launch vehicle used on Apollo 12,[30] SA–507, from that used on Apollo 11. There were another 17 instrumentation measurements in the Apollo 12 launch vehicle, bringing the number to 1,365.[31] The entire vehicle, including the spacecraft, weighed 6,487,742 pounds (2,942,790 kg) at launch, an increase from Apollo 11's 6,477,875 pounds (2,938,315 kg). Of this figure, the spacecraft weighed 110,044 pounds (49,915 kg), up from 109,646 pounds (49,735 kg) on Apollo 11.[32]
Third stage trajectory

After LM separation, the third stage of the Saturn V, the S-IVB, was intended to fly into solar orbit. The S-IVB auxiliary propulsion system was fired, with the intent that the Moon's gravity would slingshot the stage into solar orbit. Due to an error, the S-IVB flew past the Moon at too high an altitude to achieve Earth escape velocity. It remained in a semi-stable Earth orbit until it finally escaped Earth orbit in 1971, but briefly returned to Earth orbit 31 years later. It was discovered by amateur astronomer Bill Yeung who gave it the temporary designation J002E3 before it was determined to be an artificial object. Again in solar orbit as of 2021, it may again be captured by Earth's gravity, but not at least until the 2040s.[33][34] The S-IVBs used on later lunar missions were deliberately crashed into the Moon to create seismic events that would register on the seismometers left on the Moon and provide data about the Moon's structure.[35]
Spacecraft
The Apollo 12 CSM on a test stand, June 30, 1969

The Apollo 12 spacecraft consisted of Command Module 108 and Service Module 108 (together Command and Service Modules 108, or CSM–108), Lunar Module 6 (LM–6), a Launch Escape System (LES), and Spacecraft-Lunar Module Adapter 15 (SLA–15). The LES contained three rocket motors to propel the CM to safety in the event of an abort shortly after launch, while the SLA housed the LM and provided a structural connection between the Saturn V and the LM.[28][36] The SLA was identical to Apollo 11's, while the LES differed only in the installation of a more reliable motor igniter.[30]

The CSM was given the call sign Yankee Clipper, while the LM had the call sign Intrepid.[37] These sea-related names were selected by the all-Navy crew from several thousand proposed names submitted by employees of the prime contractors of the respective modules.[38] George Glacken, a flight test engineer at North American Aviation, builder of the CSM, proposed Yankee Clipper as such ships had "majestically sailed the high seas with pride and prestige for a new America". Intrepid was from a suggestion by Robert Lambert, a planner at Grumman, builder of the LM, as evocative of "this nation's resolute determination for continued exploration of space, stressing our astronauts' fortitude and endurance of hardship".[39]

The differences between the CSM and LM of Apollo 11, and those of Apollo 12, were few and minor.[30] A hydrogen separator was added to the CSM to stop the gas from entering the potable water tank—Apollo 11 had had one, though mounted on the water dispenser in the CM's cabin.[40] Gaseous hydrogen in the water had given the Apollo 11 crew severe flatulence.[41] Other changes included the strengthening of the recovery loop attached following splashdown, meaning that the swimmers recovering the CM would not have to attach an auxiliary loop.[40] LM changes included a structural modification so that scientific experiment packages could be carried for deployment on the lunar surface.[42] Two hammocks were added for greater comfort of the astronauts while resting on the Moon, and a color television camera substituted for the black and white one used on the lunar surface during Apollo 11.[43]
ALSEP
Main article: Apollo Lunar Surface Experiments Package
Apollo 12's Passive Seismic Experiment

The Apollo Lunar Surface Experiments Package, or ALSEP, was a suite of scientific instruments designed to be emplaced on the lunar surface by the Apollo astronauts, and thereafter operate autonomously, sending data to Earth.[44] Development of the ALSEP was part of NASA's response to some scientists who opposed the crewed lunar landing program (they felt that robotic craft could explore the Moon more cheaply) by demonstrating that some tasks, such as deployment of the ALSEP, required humans.[45] In 1966, a contract to design and build the ALSEPs was awarded to the Bendix Corporation.[46] Due to the limited time the Apollo 11 crew would have on the lunar surface, a smaller suite of experiments was flown, known as the Early Apollo Surface Experiment Package (EASEP). Apollo 12 was the first mission to carry an ALSEP; one would be flown on each of the subsequent lunar landing missions, though the components that were included would vary.[44] Apollo 12's ALSEP was to be deployed at least 300 feet (91 m) away from the LM to protect the instruments from the debris that would be generated when the ascent stage of the LM took off to return the astronauts to lunar orbit.[47]
Bean places the fuel element into the SNAP-27 RTG

Apollo 12's ALSEP included a Lunar Surface Magnetometer (LSM), to measure the magnetic field at the Moon's surface, a Lunar Atmosphere Detector (LAD, also known as the Cold Cathode Gauge Experiment), intended to measure the density and temperature of the thin lunar atmosphere and how it varies, a Lunar Ionosphere Detector (LID, also known as the Suprathermal Ion Detector Experiment, or SIDE), intended to study the charged particles in the lunar atmosphere, and the Solar Wind Spectrometer, to measure the strength and direction of the solar wind at the Moon's surface—the free-standing Solar Wind Composition Experiment, to measure what makes up the solar wind, would be deployed and then brought back to Earth by the astronauts.[48] A Dust Detector was used to measure the accumulation of lunar dust on the equipment.[49] Apollo 12's Passive Seismic Experiment (PSE), a seismometer, would measure moonquakes and other movements in the Moon's crust, and would be calibrated by the nearby planned impact of the ascent stage of Apollo 12's LM, an object of known mass and velocity hitting the Moon at a known location, and projected to be equivalent to the explosive force of one ton of TNT.[50]

The ALSEP experiments left on the Moon by Apollo 12 were connected to a Central Station, which contained a transmitter, receiver, timer, data processor, and equipment for power distribution and control of the experiments.[51] The equipment was powered by SNAP-27, a radioisotope thermoelectric generator (RTG) developed by the Atomic Energy Commission. Containing plutonium, the RTG flown on Apollo 12 was the first use of atomic energy on a crewed NASA spacecraft—some NASA and military satellites had previously used similar systems. The plutonium core was brought from Earth in a cask attached to an LM landing leg, a container designed to survive re-entry in the event of an aborted mission, something NASA considered unlikely.[52] The cask would survive re-entry on Apollo 13, sinking in the Tonga Trench of the Pacific Ocean, apparently without radioactive leakage.[53]

The Apollo 12 ALSEP experiments were activated from Earth on November 19, 1969.[54] The LAD returned only a small amount of useful data due to the failure of its power supply soon after activation.[55] The LSM was deactivated on June 14, 1974, as was the other LSM deployed on the Moon, from Apollo 15. All powered ALSEP experiments that remained active were deactivated on September 30, 1977,[54] principally because of budgetary constraints.[44]
Mission highlights
Apollo 12 launches from Kennedy Space Center, November 14, 1969
Launch

With President Richard Nixon in attendance, the first time a current U.S. president had witnessed a crewed space launch,[56] as well as Vice President Spiro Agnew,[57] Apollo 12 launched as planned at 11:22:00 on November 14, 1969 (16:22:00 UT) from Kennedy Space Center. This was at the start of a launch window of three hours and four minutes to reach the Moon with optimal lighting conditions at the planned landing point.[58][59] There were completely overcast rainy skies, and the vehicle encountered winds of 151.7 knots (280.9 km/h; 174.6 mph) during ascent, the strongest of any Apollo mission.[60] There was a NASA rule against launching into a cumulonimbus cloud; this had been waived and it was later determined that the launch vehicle never entered such a cloud.[61] Had the mission been postponed, it could have been launched on November 16 with landing at a backup site where there would be no Surveyor, but since time pressure to achieve a lunar landing had been removed by Apollo 11's success, NASA might have waited until December for the next opportunity to go to the Surveyor crater.[62]

Lightning struck the Saturn V 36.5 seconds after lift-off, triggered by the vehicle itself. The static discharge caused a voltage transient that knocked all three fuel cells offline, meaning the spacecraft was being powered entirely from its batteries, which could not supply enough current to meet demand. A second strike at 52 seconds knocked out the "8-ball" attitude indicator. The telemetry stream at Mission Control was garbled, but the Saturn V continued to fly normally; the strikes had not affected the Saturn V instrument unit guidance system, which functioned independently from the CSM. The astronauts unexpectedly had a board red with caution and warning lights, but could not tell exactly what was wrong.[63][64][65]

The Electrical, Environmental and Consumables Manager (EECOM) in Mission Control, John Aaron, remembered the telemetry failure pattern from an earlier test when a power loss caused a malfunction in the CSM signal conditioning electronics (SCE), which converted raw signals from instrumentation to data that could be displayed on Mission Control's consoles, and knew how to fix it.[64][66] Aaron made a call, "Flight, EECOM. Try SCE to Aux", to switch the SCE to a backup power supply. The switch was fairly obscure, and neither Flight Director Gerald Griffin, CAPCOM Gerald P. Carr, nor Conrad knew what it was; Bean, who as LMP was the spacecraft's engineer, knew where to find it and threw the switch, after which the telemetry came back online, revealing no significant malfunctions. Bean put the fuel cells back online, and the mission continued.[64][67][68] Once in Earth parking orbit, the crew carefully checked out their spacecraft before re-igniting the S-IVB third stage for trans-lunar injection. The lightning strikes caused no serious permanent damage.[69]

Initially, it was feared that the lightning strike could have damaged the explosive bolts that opened the Command Module's parachute compartment. The decision was made not to share this with the astronauts and to continue with the flight plan, since they would die if the parachutes failed to deploy, whether following an Earth-orbit abort or upon a return from the Moon, so nothing was to be gained by aborting.[70] The parachutes deployed and functioned normally at the end of the mission.[71]
Outward journey
View of Earth taken en route to the Moon

After systems checks in Earth orbit, performed with great care because of the lightning strikes, the trans-lunar injection burn, made with the S-IVB, took place at 02:47:22.80 into the mission, setting Apollo 12 on course for the Moon. An hour and twenty minutes later, the CSM separated from the S-IVB, after which Gordon performed the transposition, docking, and extraction maneuver to dock with the LM and separate the combined craft from the S-IVB, which was then sent on an attempt to reach solar orbit.[72][73] The stage fired its engines to leave the vicinity of the spacecraft, a change from Apollo 11, where the SM's Service Propulsion System (SPS) engine was used to distance it from the S-IVB.[74]

As there were concerns the LM might have been damaged by the lightning strikes, Conrad and Bean entered it on the first day of flight to check its status, earlier than planned. They found no issues. At 30:52.44.36, the only necessary midcourse correction during the translunar coast was made, placing the craft on a hybrid, non-free-return trajectory. Previous crewed missions to lunar orbit had taken a free-return trajectory, allowing an easy return to Earth if the craft's engines did not fire to enter lunar orbit. Apollo 12 was the first crewed spacecraft to take a hybrid free-return trajectory, that would require another burn to return to Earth, but one that could be executed by the LM's Descent Propulsion System (DPS) if the SPS failed. The use of a hybrid trajectory allowed more flexibility in mission planning. It for example allowed Apollo 12 to launch in daylight and reach the planned landing spot on schedule.[75] Use of a hybrid trajectory meant that Apollo 12 took 8 hours longer to go from trans-lunar injection to lunar orbit.[76]
Lunar orbit and Moon landing
Lunar Module Intrepid above the Moon. The small crater in the foreground is Ammonius; the large crater at right is Herschel. Photograph by Richard F. Gordon Jr. on board the Command Module Yankee Clipper.

Apollo 12 entered a lunar orbit of 170.2 by 61.66 nautical miles (315.2 by 114.2 km; 195.9 by 70.96 mi) with an SPS burn of 352.25 seconds at mission time 83:25:26.36. On the first lunar orbit, there was a television transmission that resulted in good-quality video of the lunar surface. On the third lunar orbit, there was another burn to circularize the craft's orbit to 66.1 by 54.59 nautical miles (122.4 by 101.1 km; 76.07 by 62.82 mi), and on the next revolution, preparations began for the lunar landing. The CSM and LM undocked at 107:54:02.3; a half hour later there was a burn by the CSM to separate them.[77] The 14.4 second burn by some of the CSM's thrusters meant that the two craft would be 2.2 nautical miles (4.1 km; 2.5 mi) apart when the LM began the burn to move to a lower orbit in preparation for landing on the Moon.[78]

The LM's Descent Propulsion System began a 29-second burn at 109:23:39.9 to move the craft to the lower orbit, from which the 717-second powered descent to the lunar surface began at 110:20:38.1.[77] Conrad had trained to expect a pattern of craters known as "the Snowman" to be visible when the craft underwent "pitchover", with the Surveyor crater in its center, but had feared he would see nothing recognizable. He was astonished to see the Snowman right where it should be, meaning they were directly on course. He took over manual control, planning to land the LM, as he had in simulations, in an area near the Surveyor crater that had been dubbed "Pete's Parking Lot", but found it rougher than expected. He had to maneuver,[79] and landed the LM at 110:32:36.2 (06:54:36 UT on November 19, 1969), just 535 feet (163 m) from the Surveyor probe.[80] This achieved one objective of the mission, to perform a precision landing near the Surveyor craft.[81]

The lunar coordinates of the landing site were 3.01239° S latitude, 23.42157° W longitude.[82] The landing caused high velocity sandblasting of the Surveyor probe. It was later determined that the sandblasting removed more dust than it delivered onto the Surveyor, because the probe was covered by a thin layer that gave it a tan hue as observed by the astronauts, and every portion of the surface exposed to the direct sandblasting was lightened back toward the original white color through the removal of lunar dust.[83]
Lunar surface activities

When Conrad, the shortest man of the initial groups of astronauts, stepped onto the lunar surface his first words were "Whoopie! Man, that may have been a small one for Neil, but that's a long one for me."[84] This was not an off-the-cuff remark: Conrad had made a US$500 bet with reporter Oriana Fallaci he would say these words, after she had queried whether NASA had instructed Neil Armstrong what to say as he stepped onto the Moon. Conrad later said he was never able to collect the money.[85]
Bean prepares to step onto the lunar surface

To improve the quality of television pictures from the Moon, a color camera was carried on Apollo 12 (unlike the monochrome camera on Apollo 11). When Bean carried the camera to the place near the LM where it was to be set up, he inadvertently pointed it directly into the Sun, destroying the Secondary Electron Conduction (SEC) tube. Television coverage of this mission was thus terminated almost immediately.[86][87]

After raising a U.S. flag on the Moon, Conrad and Bean devoted much of the remainder of the first EVA to deploying the Apollo Lunar Surface Experiments Package (ALSEP).[88] There were minor difficulties with the deployment. Bean had trouble extracting the RTG's plutonium fuel element from its protective cask, and the astronauts had to resort to the use of a hammer to hit the cask and dislodge the fuel element. Some of the ALSEP packages proved hard to deploy, though the astronauts were successful in all cases.[89] With the PSE able to detect their footprints as they headed back to the LM, the astronauts secured a core tube full of lunar material, and collected other samples. The first EVA lasted 3 hours, 56 minutes and 3 seconds.[88]

Four possible geologic traverses had been planned, the variable being where the LM might set down. Conrad had landed it between two of these potential landing points, and during the first EVA and the rest break that followed, scientists in Houston combined two of the traverses into one that Conrad and Bean could follow from their landing point.[90] The resultant traverse resembled a rough circle, and when the astronauts emerged from the LM some 13 hours after ending the first EVA, the first stop was Head crater, some 100 yards (91 m) from the LM. There, Bean noticed that Conrad's footprints showed lighter material underneath, indicating the presence of ejecta from Copernicus crater, 230 miles (370 km) to the north, something that scientists examining overhead photographs of the site had hoped to find. After the mission, samples from Head allowed geologists to date the impact that formed Copernicus[91]—according to initial dating, some 810,000,000 years ago.[92]
Conrad with the U.S. flag

The astronauts proceeded to Bench crater and Sharp crater and past Halo crater before arriving at Surveyor crater, where the Surveyor 3 probe had landed.[56] Fearing treacherous footing or that the probe might topple on them, they approached Surveyor cautiously, descending into the shallow crater some distance away and then following a contour to reach the craft, but found the footing solid and the probe stable. They collected several pieces of Surveyor, including the television camera, as well as taking rocks that had been studied by television. Conrad and Bean had procured an automatic timer for their Hasselblad cameras, and had brought it with them without telling Mission Control, hoping to take a selfie of the two of them with the probe, but when the time came to use it, could not locate it among the lunar samples they had already placed in their Hand Tool Carrier.[93] Before returning to the LM's vicinity, Conrad and Bean went to Block crater, within Surveyor crater.[94] The second EVA lasted 3 hours, 49 minutes, 15 seconds, during which they traveled 4,300 feet (1,300 m). During the EVAs, Conrad and Bean went as far as 1,350 feet (410 m) from the LM, and collected 73.75 pounds (33.45 kg) of samples.[95]
Lunar orbit solo activities
Gordon in the CM simulator

After the LM's departure, Gordon had little to say as Mission Control focused on the lunar landing. Once that was accomplished, Gordon sent his congratulations and, on the next orbit, was able to spot both the LM and the Surveyor on the ground and convey their locations to Houston. During the first EVA, Gordon prepared for a plane change maneuver, a burn to alter the CSM's orbit to compensate for the rotation of the Moon, though at times he had difficulty communicating with Houston since Conrad and Bean were using the same communications circuit. Once the two moonwalkers had returned to the LM, Gordon executed the burn,[96] which ensured he would be in the proper position to rendezvous with the LM when it launched from the Moon.[97]

While alone in orbit, Gordon performed the Lunar Multispectral Photography Experiment, using four Hasselblad cameras arranged in a ring and aimed through one of the CM's windows. With each camera having a different color filter, simultaneous photos would be taken by each, showing the appearance of lunar features at different points on the spectrum. Analysis of the images might reveal colors not visible to the naked eye or detectable with ordinary color film, and information could be obtained about the composition of sites that would not soon be visited by humans. Among the sites studied were contemplated landing points for future Apollo missions.[98][99]
Return
A solar eclipse seen from Apollo 12

LM Intrepid lifted off from the Moon at mission time 143:03:47.78, or 14:25:47 UT on November 20, 1969; after several maneuvers, CSM and LM docked three and a half hours later.[100] At 147:59:31.6, the LM ascent stage was jettisoned, and shortly thereafter the CSM maneuvered away. Under control from Earth, the LM's remaining propellant was depleted in a burn that caused it to impact the Moon 39 nautical miles (72 km; 45 mi) from the Apollo 12 landing point.[100] The seismometer the astronauts had left on the lunar surface registered the resulting vibrations for more than an hour.[101]

The crew stayed another day in lunar orbit taking photographs of the surface, including of candidate sites for future Apollo landings. A second plane change maneuver was made at 159:04:45.47, lasting 19.25 seconds.[102]

The trans-Earth injection burn, to send the CSM Yankee Clipper towards home, was conducted at 172:27:16.81 and lasted 130.32 seconds. Two short midcourse correction burns were made en route. A final television broadcast was made, the astronauts answering questions submitted by the media.[71] There was ample time for rest on the way back to Earth.[103] One event was the photography of a solar eclipse that occurred when the Earth came between the spacecraft and the Sun; Bean described it as the most spectacular sight of the mission.[104]
Splashdown

Yankee Clipper returned to Earth on November 24, 1969, at 20:58 UT (3:58 pm Eastern Time, 10:58 am HST), in the Pacific Ocean. The landing was hard, resulting in a camera becoming dislodged and striking Bean in the forehead. After recovery by USS Hornet, they entered the Mobile Quarantine Facility (MQF), while lunar samples and Surveyor parts were sent ahead by air to the Lunar Receiving Laboratory (LRL) in Houston. Once the Hornet docked in Hawaii, the MQF was offloaded and flown to Ellington Air Force Base near Houston on November 29, from where it was taken to the LRL, where the astronauts remained until released from quarantine on December 10.[105][106]
Mission insignia

The Apollo 12 mission patch shows the crew's naval background; all three astronauts at the time of the mission were U.S. Navy commanders. It features a clipper ship arriving at the Moon, representing the CM Yankee Clipper. The ship trails fire, and flies the flag of the United States. The mission name APOLLO XII and the crew names are on a wide gold border, with a small blue trim. Blue and gold are traditional U.S. Navy colors. The patch has four stars on it – one each for the three astronauts who flew the mission and one for Clifton Williams, the original LMP on Conrad's crew who was killed in 1967 and would have flown the mission. The star was placed there at the suggestion of his replacement, Bean.[107]

The insignia was designed by the crew with the aid of several employees of NASA contractors. The Apollo 12 landing area on the Moon is within the portion of the lunar surface shown on the insignia, based on a photograph of a globe of the Moon, taken by engineers. The clipper ship was based on photographs of such a ship obtained by Bean.[108]
Aftermath and spacecraft location
Apollo 12 CM Yankee Clipper on display at the Virginia Air and Space Center in Hampton, Virginia

After the mission, Conrad urged his crewmates to join him in the Skylab program, seeing in it the best chance of flying in space again. Bean did so—Conrad commanded Skylab 2, the first crewed mission to the space station, while Bean commanded Skylab 3.[109] Gordon, though, still hoped to walk on the Moon and remained with the Apollo program, serving as backup commander of Apollo 15. He was the likely commander of Apollo 18, but that mission was canceled and he did not fly in space again.[110]

The Apollo 12 command module Yankee Clipper, was displayed at the Paris Air Show and was then placed at NASA's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia; ownership was transferred to the Smithsonian in July 1971. It is on display at the Virginia Air and Space Center in Hampton.[111][112]

Mission Control had remotely fired the service module's thrusters after jettison, hoping to have it skip off the atmosphere and enter a high-apogee orbit, but the lack of tracking data confirming this caused it to conclude it most likely burned up in the atmosphere at the time of CM re-entry.[113] The S-IVB is in a solar orbit that is sometimes affected by the Earth.[114]

The ascent stage of LM Intrepid impacted the Moon November 20, 1969, at 22:17:17.7 UT (5:17 pm EST) 3.94°S 21.20°W.[115] In 2009, the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) photographed the Apollo 12 landing site, where the descent stage, ALSEP, Surveyor 3 spacecraft, and astronaut footpaths remain.[116] In 2011, the LRO returned to the landing site at a lower altitude to take higher resolution photographs.[117]
See also

    List of artificial objects on the Moon
    List of spacewalks and moonwalks 1965–1999

Gemini 11 (officially Gemini XI)[2] was the ninth crewed spaceflight mission of NASA's Project Gemini, which flew from September 12 to 15, 1966. It was the 17th crewed American flight and the 25th spaceflight to that time (includes X-15 flights over 100 kilometers (54 nmi)). Astronauts Charles "Pete" Conrad Jr. and Richard F. Gordon Jr. performed the first direct-ascent (first orbit) rendezvous with an Agena Target Vehicle, docking with it 1 hour 34 minutes after launch; used the Agena rocket engine to achieve a record high-apogee Earth orbit; and created a small amount of artificial gravity by spinning the two spacecraft connected by a tether. Gordon also performed two extra-vehicular activities for a total of 2 hours 41 minutes.
Crew
Position     Astronaut
Command Pilot     Charles "Pete" Conrad Jr.
Second spaceflight
Pilot     Richard F. Gordon Jr.
First spaceflight
Backup crew
Position     Astronaut
Command Pilot     Neil A. Armstrong
Pilot     William A. Anders
Support crew

    Clifton C. Williams Jr. (Cape CAPCOM)
    John W. Young (Houston CAPCOM)
    Alan L. Bean (Houston CAPCOM)

Mission parameters

    Mass: 8,374 pounds (3,798 kg)

Highest orbit (followed twice):

    Perigee: 156.4 nautical miles (289.7 km)
    Apogee: 739.2 nautical miles (1,369.0 km)[3]
    Inclination: 28.85°
    Period: 101.52 min

Docking

    Docked: September 12, 1966, 16:16:00 UTC
    Undocked: September 14, 1966, 16:55:00 UTC

Space walk

    Gordon – EVA 1
        Start: September 13, 1966, 14:44:00 UTC
        End: September 13, 1966, 15:17:00 UTC
        Duration: 0 hours 33 minutes
    Gordon – EVA 2 (stand up)
        Start: September 14, 1966, 12:49:00 UTC
        End: September 14, 1966, 14:57:00 UTC
        Duration: 2 hours 08 minutes

Objectives

    Perform a direct-ascent rendezvous with the Agena Target Vehicle on the first orbit in support of Project Apollo. This would simulate a Lunar Module rendezvous with the Command/Service Module after a lunar landing.
    Use the Agena rocket engine to put the combined craft in a high-apogee elliptical orbit.
    Perform two extra-vehicular activities.
    Demonstrate passive attitude stabilization of the two spacecraft connected by a tether and create artificial gravity by spinning the combined craft.[4]
    Perform miscellaneous scientific experiments.
    Perform a computer-controlled atmospheric reentry to a precision splashdown point.

Gemini 11 launch
An Atlas launch vehicle launches GATV-5006 into orbit for the Gemini 11 mission.
Gemini 11     Agena info
Agena     GATV-5006
NSSDC ID:     1966-080A
Mass     7,000 pounds (3,200 kg)
Launch site     LC-14
Launch date     September 12, 1966
Launch time     13:05:01 UTC
1st perigee     156.4 nautical miles (289.7 km)
1st apogee     165.8 nautical miles (307.1 km)
Period     90.56 min
Inclination     28.84 deg
Reentered     December 30, 1966
Flight
Arabian Peninsula (top left) and northeast Africa (bottom) as seen from the orbiting Gemini-11 spacecraft at an altitude of 340 nautical miles during its 27th revolution around Earth. (Taken with a modified 70 mm Hasselblad camera.)

The direct-ascent rendezvous and docking with the Agena vehicle was achieved approximately 94 minutes after lift-off, depending on the on-board computer and radar equipment with only minimal assistance from ground support.[4]

Gemini 11 used the rocket on its Agena target vehicle to raise its apogee to 853 miles (1,373 km), the highest Earth orbit ever reached by a crewed spacecraft.[5] The perigee was 179 miles (288 km), and maximum velocity (at perigee) was 17,967 miles per hour (28,915 km/h).[4] The apogee record stands as of October 2022, even though men have achieved greater distances from Earth by flying to the Moon in the Apollo program.[6] The maximum operational altitude of the Space Shuttle was much lower, at 386 miles (621 km) for the STS-31 flight in 1990. The September 2021 SpaceX flight of Inspiration4, while having an apogee higher than most Space Shuttle flights, only reached 585 kilometres (364 mi).[7]

The crew docked and undocked four times and still had sufficient Gemini maneuvering fuel for an unplanned fifth rendezvous. They did not remain in the high orbit, but changed it back to a near-circular one at 184 miles (296 km).[4]

Gordon's first EVA, planned to last for two hours, involved fastening a 100-foot (30 m) tether, stored in the Agena's docking collar, to the Gemini's docking bar for the passive stabilization experiment. Gordon achieved this, but as with previous Gemini EVAs, trying to do work for an extended period proved more fatiguing than in ground simulation, and the EVA had to be terminated after only half an hour.

The passive stabilization experiment proved to be a bit troublesome. Conrad and Gordon separated the craft in a nose-down (i.e., Agena-down) position, but found that the tether would not be kept taut simply by the Earth's gravity gradient, as expected. However, they were able to generate a small amount of artificial gravity, about 0.00015 g, by firing their side thrusters to slowly rotate the combined craft like a slow-motion pair of bolas.[4]

Gordon successfully performed a second EVA standing up with his head and shoulders out of the hatch to photograph the Earth, clouds, and stars. This was not tiring and lasted more than two hours.[4]
Scientific experiments

The 12 scientific experiments were:[8]

    Mass Determination: To test a technique and accuracy of a direct-contact method of determining the mass of an orbiting object, in this case the Agena Target Vehicle.
    Night Image Intensification: To test the usefulness and performance of a low-light-level television system as a supplement to unaided vision in observing surface features primarily when such features are in darkness and spacecraft pilots are not dark-adapted.
    Power Tool Evaluation: To evaluate man's capability to perform work tasks in space, including the comparison of ability to work tethered and untethered, and to evaluate the performance of the minimum-reaction power tool.
    Radiation and Zero G Effects on Blood and Neurospora: To determine whether weightlessness enhances the effects of radiation on human white blood cells and Neurospora crassa fungi.[9]
    Synoptic Terrain Photography: To obtain high-quality photographs for research in geology, geophysics, geography, oceanography, and related fields.
    Synoptic Weather Photography: To obtain selective high-quality photographs of clouds to study the fine structure of the Earth's weather system.
    Nuclear Emulsion: To study the cosmic radiation incident on the Earth's atmosphere, to obtain detailed chemical composition of the heavy primary nuclei, and to search for rare particles.
    Airglow Horizon Photography: To measure by direct photography the heights at which atomic oxygen and sodium layers occur in the upper atmosphere.
    Ultraviolet Astronomical Camera: To test the techniques of ultraviolet photography under vacuum conditions and to obtain ultraviolet radiation observations of stars in wavelength region of 2,000 to 4,000 angstroms by spectral means.
    Ion Wake Measurement: To determine and measure the ion and electron wake structure and perturbation of the ambient medium produced by an orbiting vehicle, and to study the changes in the ion flux and wake caused by thruster firings.
    Earth-Moon Libration Region Photography: To investigate the regions of the L4 and L5 libration points of the Earth–Moon system to determine the possible existence of clouds of particulate matter orbiting the Earth in these regions.
    Dim-Light Photography and Orthicon: To obtain photographs of various faint and diffuse astronomical phenomena.

Reentry

The mission ended with the first totally automatic, computer-controlled reentry by the U.S., which brought Gemini 11 down 2.8 miles (4.5 km) from its recovery ship USS Guam, only 1.5 miles (2.4 km) from the planned position.[4]

Astronaut recovery was done by Navy Helicopter Squadron HS-3.

The Gemini 11 mission was supported by 9,054 United States Department of Defense personnel, 73 aircraft, and 13 ships.[10]
Insignia
Gemini 11 space-flown Fliteline Medallion

Since Conrad and Gordon were both members of the US Navy, the embroidered mission patch was designed in Navy colors: blue and gold. Stars are used to mark the major milestones of the mission. The first orbit Agena rendezvous is marked by a small gold star just above the Earth, to the left. The Agena docking is marked by a large star on the left. The star at the top marks the record high apogee reached by Gemini 11. Note that the scale is greatly exaggerated; their maximum altitude of 850 miles (1,370 km) is roughly the distance from St. Louis to Cape Kennedy. Finally, the star on the right marks Dick Gordon's spacewalk. The docking, record apogee and spacewalk are also shown on the patch by the Agena, orbital apogee path and spacewalking astronaut.
Potential lunar missions

Gemini 11's record altitude was ultimately the result of an internal race to the Moon. As early as 1961, NASA's Jim Chamberlin and McDonnell Aircraft had advocated using Gemini spacecraft to get to the Moon sooner than Apollo. Their proposals considered using Centaur rockets to boost the Gemini on a circumlunar trajectory (similar to the Soviet's Zond program), lunar orbit missions using Centaur rockets for translunar injection and Agena for lunar orbit insertion, and even lunar landing missions using Gemini in place of the Apollo Command Module and a small open-cockpit Langley Light LM in place of the Apollo Lunar Module. Multiple Titan or Saturn IB rockets, and even the abandoned Saturn C-3 were considered as the launch vehicles.

Pete Conrad liked these ideas and together with McDonnell corporations strongly advocated his Gemini 11 to be circumlunar. Discretely called 'Gemini - Large Earth Orbit', the plan would use a Titan IIIC-launched Transtage. The Gemini 11 crew would be launched with the Titan II GLV as they did in reality, and would dock with the Transtage, which would then boost them to translunar velocity. Conrad managed to stir Congressional interest, but NASA administrator James Webb informed them that any extra funds Congress cared to appropriate for such a project would be better spent accelerating the Apollo program. After further internal struggles, Conrad finally got NASA approval for the Agena on his Gemini 11 flight to boost him onto two record highly elliptical 1,370 km orbits. This high flight was the only remnant of lunar Gemini.[11]
Spacecraft location
Gemini 11 front
Gemini 11 rear
The Gemini 11 capsule on display at the California Science Center in Los Angeles

The spacecraft is on display at the California Science Center in Los Angeles, California.
See also

    Spaceflight portal

    Agena Target Vehicle
    Extra-vehicular activity
    List of spacewalks
    Splashdown
    Space exploration
    U.S. space exploration history on U.S. stamps
    Space capsule
    Space suit


    Flew as a test pilot from 1957 to 1960 where he worked in the F-8U Crusader, F-11F Tiger, North American FJ Fury, and A-4D Skyhawk.
    Set a transcontinental speed record of 869.74 mph in 2 hours, 47 minutes in the F4H- 1 Phantom II.
    Selected to be apart of NASA’s third class of astronauts.
    Set an altitude record of 851 miles on his first space flight as pilot of Gemini 11 with Pete Conrad which is still the highest-apogee earth orbit.
    Flew on Apollo 12 as Command Module Pilot. However, the mission quickly faced catastrophe as the spacecraft suffered a loss of cockpit displays due to lightning strikes. Regardless, Gordon and the rest of the crew successfully completed the second manned mission to land on the moon.
    Served as Chief of Advanced Programs in the Astronaut Office working on the design and application of the space shuttle.