Oklahoma Journeys

Week of December 13, 2008

Gemini 6 and Tom Stafford

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Gordon Cooper was the first Oklahoman to fly in space. Weatherford Oklahoma’s Thomas Stafford was the second. Third time’s the charm; it was 43 years ago this week that Gemini 6 finally was launched into space. That’s our story on Oklahoma Journeys from the Oklahoma History Center.

From the Oklahoma History Center, this is Oklahoma Journeys. I’m Michael Dean.

The morning of December 15, 1965, Thomas Stafford and Wally Schirra headed to launch pad 19 to wait for the final countdown for their Gemini 6 mission to rendezvous with the Gemini 7 already in orbit. For man to able to fly to the moon, two spacecraft had to meet and dock in orbit. This was the first time that NASA would try this maneuver.

Fellow Oklahoman Gordon Cooper had flown the Gemini 5 mission, and now Stafford was to be next in space on Gemini 6. But a series problems and near catastrophes nearly caused that flight to be called off. Originally Gemini 6 was to meet an Agena rocket in space, but as Stafford and Schirra were sitting in their capsule waiting for their launch, they watched the Agena blow up after it was launched. That was their first try. That mission was canceled. NASA then decided to substitute an alternate mission: the meeting in space of two Gemini spacecraft. Their flight would now be known as Gemini 6A and would launch eight days after the launch of Frank Borman and Jim Lovell in Gemini 7. When Gemini 6 tried again, the engines on their Titan 2 rocket shut down on the pad just after ignition but before the actual launch. That was their second try. Their third attempt to blast off occurred three days later, on the morning December 15, 1965, and finally they were in orbit. With Stafford at the controls, Gemini 6 succeeded to meeting Gemini 7 later that day, making the mission a huge success.

As their sleep period approached Gemini 6 made a separation burn and slowly drifted out to about 10 miles. This ensured that there wouldn't be any accidental collisions in the night. But before everyone went to sleep, the crew of Gemini 6 had a surprise for everyone. Shirra, with Stafford’s help and encouragement, called Gemini 7. This is what Schirra said: “We have an object, looks like a satellite going from north to south, probably in polar orbit…. Looks like it might be going to reenter soon. Stand by one …. I see a command module and eight smaller modules in front. The pilot of the command module is wearing a red suit.” At that point, the sound of "Jingle Bells" was heard played on a harmonica with a handful of small bells. The Smithsonian claims that these were the first musical instruments played in space, and they have those instruments on display. The next day, December 16, 1965, Gemini 6 made a successful reentry landing within a mile or so of the aircraft carrier, USS Wasp. It was the first truly accurate reentry. It was also the first to be televised live through a satellite linkup.

You can see the actual Gemini 6 capsule Tom Stafford flew in on display at the Oklahoma History Center, NE 23rd Street just east of the state capitol. The History Center is open from 9 am to 5 pm Monday thru Saturday and Noon to 5 pm Sundays. Oklahoma Journeys is a production of the Oklahoma History Center, dedicated to collecting, preserving and sharing our state’s past. I’m Michael Dean.