Mission GEMINI IV - Lot 22

Mission GEMINI IV Series of seven shots from the film of the first American EVA, recorded by a camera mounted on the outside of the spacecraft by Ed White before its spacewalk. Vintage silver prints. On the back of each photo: - A "Centre Culturel Américain U.S.I.S - Paris" stamp and the photo reference (US 36.971 / 972 / 973 / 974 / 975 / 976 /977). - Text stuck on with scotch tape, with description of the image in English, and translation into French 25.5 x 20.5 cm with margins. Marginal handling marks. Scotch tape. 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 cosmonaut Alexei Leonov's success in performing the first EVA on March 18, 1965. On this occasion, White remained outside the spacecraft for 23 minutes. These images were taken by a 16mm Maurer camera that Ed White mounted on the outside of the spacecraft, prior to his EVA. In some shots, the camera's shadow is visible on the open hatch door in the lower right-hand corner. Transcript of radio exchanges, as Ed White installs the camera on the outside of the ship and retrieves it on his return from the spacewalk: 04:24:57 Capcom: What is your status on decompression? 04:25:02 McDivitt: Got the 60-mm camera mounted, and he's getting the gun readu right now. 04:48:03 White: All right. Let me fold the camera and put the gun up. [...] 04:48:26 White: Okay. Let's not lose that camera now. I don't quite have it. A little bit more, but easy, easy, easy.