Gemini X was the eighth manned mission and the fourth rendezvous mission of the Gemini Program. The Gemini Atlas-Agena Target Vehicle was launched from Complex 14, Cape Kennedy, Florida, at 3:39:46 p.m. e.s.t. on July 18, 1966. The Gemini Space Vehicle was launched from Complex 19, Cape Kennedy, Florida, at 5:20:27 p.m. e.s.t, on July 18, 1966, with Astronaut John W. Young as the Command pilot and Astronaut Michael Collins as the Pilot. The flight was successfully concluded on July 21, 1966, when the spacecraft was landed within sight of the prime recovery ship at 70:46:39 ground elapsed time. The flight crew elected to be retrieved by helicopter and were on the deck of the prime recovery ship approximately 28 minutes after landing.
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| The Gemini spacecraft, a distant ancestor of SpaceX Dragon, was designed to carry two astronauts into Earth orbit to test long-duration flight, rendezvous and docking and other techniques needed for journeys to the moon. Credit: NASA |
