Apollo, Gemini astronaut James McDivitt dies at 93
16:29 JST, October 28, 2022
WASHINGTON (Reuters) — James McDivitt, a former U.S. astronaut who commanded some of NASA’s earliest and most ambitious missions in space, died in his sleep at age 93, NASA said in a statement on Oct. 17.
McDivitt, who was selected for NASA’s second astronaut class in 1962, was the commanding pilot for the U.S. space agency’s Gemini 4 mission in 1965 and Apollo 9 in 1969, a mission that helped pave the way for the first human lunar landing.
The astronaut and retired U.S. Air Force test pilot died “peacefully in his sleep surrounded by his family and friends in Tucson, Arizona,” NASA said in a statement.
McDivitt’s two missions were instrumental in the Cold War-driven space race between the United States and Soviet Union, whose string of early spaceflight successes galvanized Washington to pursue rival achievements such as the Apollo 11 first crewed moon-landing in July of 1969.
The fourth mission under Project Gemini, a precursor to NASA’s Apollo program, marked McDivitt’s first flight to space.
During that four-day spaceflight, he oversaw the first American spacewalk in which fellow astronaut Ed White floated outside of their spacecraft for the first time, tethered by a cord.
McDivitt later joined two astronauts as commander of the Apollo 9 mission, a crucial debut flight test of NASA’s Lunar Module that would later land astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin on the moon during the Apollo 11 mission.
"Science & Nature" POPULAR ARTICLE
-
Japan’s Space One Launch of Kairos Rocket Delayed for 2 Days in a Row Due to Strong Winds (UPDATE 1)
-
PayPay Launches Service for Cashless Offerings at Shrine, Temple; Services Aims to Simplify, Speed up Donating
-
Did Venus Ever Have Oceans? Scientists Have an Answer
-
Govt Plans to Boost Facilities at H3 Rocket Launch Site in Effort to Increase Launch Numbers
-
Bronze Statues, Snake Sculptures Found in Tuscan Thermal Baths
JN ACCESS RANKING
- New Energy Plan Reflects Fear of Reduced Competitiveness; Japan Concerned About Exclusion From Supply Chains
- ‘Maximum Use’ of Nuclear Power Eyed in Revised Energy Plan; Japan Seeks Decarbonization, Stable Supply of Enough Energy
- Prehistoric Stone Tool Cut Out of Coral Reef and Taken Away in Kyushu island; Artifact was Believed to Have Been Dropped in Sea During Prehistoric Jomon Period
- Record 320 School Staff Punished for Sex Offenses in Japan
- New Year’s Ceremony Held at Imperial Palace (UPDATE 1)