NASA - Lot 11

NASA GEMINI IV mission Photograph of astronaut Ed White floating in space above a sea of clouds, during the first American EVA. Vintage print, numbered NASA (S-65-30272) in black in the upper margin. Printed NASA-MSC legend on back. Dated June 3, 1965. 25.5 x 20.5 cm with margins. Marginal handling marks. Gemini Titan IV (GT-4) was the second crewed mission of the Gemini program. James McDivitt and Edward White successfully completed the 4-day, 62-orbit flight between June 3 and 7, 1965. Only a few weeks before liftoff, the mission program was revised to include the first spacewalk (EVA - Extra-Vehicular Activity) by an American astronaut; a direct response to the success of cosmonaut Alexei Leonov, who performed the first EVA on March 18, 1965. On this occasion, White remained outside the spacecraft for 23 minutes. Taken while flying over the Pacific Ocean, this photograph has a beautiful aesthetic with Ed White standing out against a sea of clouds with the curvature of the earth in one angle of the shot. We see many details of the equipment used during this spacewalk. These include his steering thruster, on which the camera is mounted, and the 7.6 m cord that attaches him to Gemini and supplies him with oxygen, which is connected to the ventilation module attached to his chest. The entire Gemini capsule is visible in the reflection of its visor. Ed White gives the following desctiption of this photograph, ("Exploring space with a camera" , Edgar M. Cortright, 1968, p 151): "This was a picture taken by my teammate, James McDivitt, on the third revolution of Gemini IV. I had a specially designed spacesuit which had 21 layers of thermal and micrometeoroid protection. My face was protected by a double gold-plated visor which provided protection from the unfiltered rays of the Sun. In my hand I held a small self-maneuvering unit which gave me control of my movements in space. On my chest was an oxygen chestpack that regulated the flow of oxygen to my suit and provided an 8-minute supply of emergency oxygen. I was secured to the spacecraft by a 25-foot umbilical line and a 23-foot tether line, which were secured together and wrapped with a golden tape for thermal insulation. On the top of the Hand-held Self-Maneuvering Unit was mounted a 35mm camera to record the event from outside the spacecraft". Radio transcript - this image was taken at T+04:34 after lift-off: 04:34:24 McDivitt: Okay. Let me get some ..... to you, Ed. I ought to be getting some tremendous pictures of you. Let me try again with the Hasselblad. 04:34:31 White: Okay. I think I've exhausted my air now. 04:34:33 McDivitt: Okay. 04:34:36 McDivitt: Stay right there. 04:34:40 White: I had very good control with it. I just needed more air (on the self-maneuvering unit). 04:34:45 McDivitt: Okay. Stand by. Let me take a couple of pictures, ole buddy. 004:34:48 White: All right. Bibliography : Andrew Chaikin, SPACE, Carlton Books Ltd 2004, p.59 photograph described and reproduced in color.