Here is my flown page from the 'Gemini V Experimental Procedure Book'. Gordon Cooper was the Command Pilot and Pete Conrad was the Pilot on Gemini V. It was an eight day mission. The backup to Cooper was Neil Armstrong and the backup for Conrad was Elliott See. It looks like the astronauts themselves may have put this together! The 'UHF' tab is attached to this page with a piece of clear tape. It also appears that someone punched two sets of holes on the left side as can be seen in the pictures. The dark shaded area on the left side is tape. This page, under number '3', directs the 'PILOT' (Conrad) to 'SWITCH FROM THE RNTY ANTENNA TO THE ADPT ANTENNA EVERY 20 SECONDS' and to 'REPORT EACH ANTENNA SWITCHING'. It also references 'TESTS NO'S 3 & 4' and 'TEST NO. 5'/'SEA LAB II COMM'. There are also transcript/mission report pages below that document the conversations of the astronauts while they were performing these tests/tasks.
FRONT
BACK
Here is the photocopied LOA for the
'Gemini V Experimental Procedure Book'
which this page came from.
The below 'MISSION COMMENTARY TRANSCRIPT" pages dated 8/23/65, document Conrads' conversations as he switches between the 'RNTY ANTENNA' (reentry) and 'ADPT ANTENNA' (adapter) as directed by the above procedure page. There is some good humored conversation between Astronaut Jim McDivitt (acting as 'Houston Cap Com'), Conrad, and Cooper during this antenna switching in which McDivitt complains that Conrad talks a lot. In response, Conrad makes up a song and sings it to McDivitt.
The below 'MISSION COMMENTARY TRANSCRIPT' pages dated 8/29/65, document the conversation between Cooper and fellow astronaut Scott Carpenter while Carpenter is 200 feet below the surface of the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California in SEA LAB as per 'TEST NO. 5'/'SEA LAB II COMM' in the procedure page. Carpenter tells Cooper he is 'transmitting from 200 feet down off La Jolla' (CA). As the transcript shows, See is the lead in for the conversation between the crew of Gemini V and Carpenter in SEA LAB. In 1966, See would die in a plane crash in the St. Louis area.
This is the cover page of the
'GEMINI PROGRAM MISSION REPORT' for
'GEMINI V', where pages 5-10 and 5-11 below came from.
Page 5-10 below describes the antenna switching test in more detail. The reason for switching between the UHF reentry antenna and the adapter-mounted UHF antenna at twenty second intervals was to see which 'was more suitable for use in certain orbital conditions such as drifting flight or low elevation-angle station passes'.
Page 5-11 below references UHF tests 3 and 4 as per the
above procedure page.
The below picture shows Gemini V lifting off. The procedure page in my possession was actually in that capsule with those brave astronauts at that exact time. It still amazes me when I think about it. Now this procedure book page is in my home! Thank God that America had (and still has) brave men like the ones that were inside that capsule so many years ago.
The below is a picture of Conrad and Cooper after splashdown of Gemini V. They just look like a couple of guys I would have loved to have had a beer with! A couple of true American heroes. From Cooper and Conrad to Pelosi and Obama in less than a generation! Definitely not a move in the right direction for the future of not only the space program, but also the nation.
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