Gemini XI Reaches a Record Apogee for a Crewed Spacecraft in Earth Orbit
The western half of Australia, including the coastline from Perth to Port Darwin, looking west, is seen from the Gemini XI spacecraft during its 26th revolution of Earth. This photograph was taken while the spacecraft was at a record-high apogee of 740 nautical miles with a modified 70mm Hasselblad camera.
The three-day Gemini XI mission, with astronauts Charles "Pete" Conrad and Richard Gordon aboard, was the first to achieve a first orbit rendezvous and docking with the Agena target vehicle. On their third day in space, the Agena's main engine was fired, raising the docked spacecraft to an apogee of 853 miles, the highest altitude in Earth orbit reached by any crewed mission. This record stood for nearly 58 years until September 10, 2024, when it was broken by the Polaris Dawn mission using the SpaceX Crew Dragon.
Credit: NASA
Image Number: S66-54706
Date: September 14, 1966
Gemini XI Reaches a Record Apogee for a Crewed Spacecraft in Earth Orbit
The western half of Australia, including the coastline from Perth to Port Darwin, looking west, is seen from the Gemini XI spacecraft during its 26th revolution of Earth. This photograph was taken while the spacecraft was at a record-high apogee of 740 nautical miles with a modified 70mm Hasselblad camera.
The three-day Gemini XI mission, with astronauts Charles "Pete" Conrad and Richard Gordon aboard, was the first to achieve a first orbit rendezvous and docking with the Agena target vehicle. On their third day in space, the Agena's main engine was fired, raising the docked spacecraft to an apogee of 853 miles, the highest altitude in Earth orbit reached by any crewed mission. This record stood for nearly 58 years until September 10, 2024, when it was broken by the Polaris Dawn mission using the SpaceX Crew Dragon.
Credit: NASA
Image Number: S66-54706
Date: September 14, 1966