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Author
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Topic: Gemini IV EVA maneuvering gun
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rsynge
Member Posts: 63
From: UK
Registered: Jul 2001
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posted 01-03-2009 11:13 AM
   
Can anyone tell me the whereabouts of Ed White's Gemini IV EVA maneuvering gun?I had thought it might be in the Smithsonian alongside the Gemini IV capsule but this does not appear to be the case? Thanks for any information. |
GACspaceguy
Member Posts: 2474
From: Guyton, GA
Registered: Jan 2006
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posted 01-03-2009 12:45 PM
I have a picture I took of it in November 2005 at the Johnson Space Center in Houston. It was part of the exhibits by the Apollo 17 command module. |
Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 42981
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 01-03-2009 04:46 PM
For reference, here is the hand-held maneuvering unit's page in the Smithsonian collection's online database. |
rsynge
Member Posts: 63
From: UK
Registered: Jul 2001
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posted 01-04-2009 05:30 AM
Thanks very much for the information guys. A picture of the gun in its recent state would be great, many thanks. |
mikej
Member Posts: 481
From: Germantown, WI USA
Registered: Jan 2004
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posted 01-04-2009 10:16 AM
quote:
Originally posted by rsynge:
A picture of the gun in its recent state would be great, many thanks.
My wife took the following photos when we visited Space Center Houston in summer 2008 (she's rather proud of the fact that she noticed and photographed an artifact which had escaped my attention.   
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dsenechal
Member Posts: 539
From:
Registered: Dec 2002
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posted 01-04-2009 02:10 PM
At least part of this display is not accurate. If memory serves, the camera mounted to the maneuvering gun was a Contarex, not a Nikon F. |
mikej
Member Posts: 481
From: Germantown, WI USA
Registered: Jan 2004
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posted 01-04-2009 02:31 PM
I've also posted some pictures to my website of a similar EVA maneuvering gun at the USSRC and of the spacewalking astronaut holding a similar EVA gun in Space Center Houston's Gemini 5 display. |
kr4mula
Member Posts: 642
From: Cinci, OH
Registered: Mar 2006
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posted 01-06-2009 11:19 AM
So which HHMU is the one that flew during Gemini IV: the Space Center Houston one or NASM's? |
JB
unregistered
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posted 01-07-2009 05:31 PM
The display in Houston is incorrect.The flown HHMU that was used on Gemini IV is in the NASM, in storage, it was taken down in 2005. |
JB
unregistered
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posted 01-08-2009 01:22 AM
There is a B&W photo of the HHMU that most of you have seen, that shows a hand holding the unit. Under the two oxygen tubes, there is a dark piece that runs horizontally that connects them both... if you look under that area, there is a gray piece that has a small dark metallic sticker on it. You can also see this sticker in the JSC display.If you look at the famous photo of Ed floating (I think its S65-30433) if you look at this area... you can see it is covered by some kind of plastic protective cover. If you compare this with the photos of the JSC display in Houston, you can see that that area on the unit is NOT covered with the plastic. Now if you look at the photo from the online archives at the NASM, you can see that that unit has the area I mentioned covered with a plastic cover now yellowed with age. You can make it out also in some of the other EVA photos. I have other close up photos of the unit from all sides that I got from Amanda Young at the NASM that shows the plastic more clearly. The ONLY HHMU photos I've see that have this plastic covered area... are from Ed's EVA. Every other unit I've seen pictures of on display have NOT had this plastic cover and have been back-ups or props created for display. |
kr4mula
Member Posts: 642
From: Cinci, OH
Registered: Mar 2006
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posted 01-08-2009 11:31 AM
I suspect some of these other ones (that aren't clearly identified as recreations) were prototypes and test articles built as they went along, since the whole thing was created in a hurried fashion. |
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