posted 02-26-2009 03:27 PM               

"The Gemini 3 capsule is a replica of the original that on March 23, 1965, Intrepid recovered with astronauts John Young and Virgil 'Gus' Grissom," described Luke Sacks, public relations manager for the museum, in response to an inquiry from collectSPACE.com.

"The spacecraft was lifted aboard Intrepid using a crane near the starboard side elevator, which is where the replica capsule will hang," he added.

The model joins other space displays aboard the aircraft carrier, including a replica of the "Aurora 7" Mercury spacecraft, whose pilot Scott Carpenter was airlifted to the Intrepid after his 1962 orbital flight.

The real Gemini 3 spacecraft, which was humorously dubbed the "Molly Brown" by Grissom after the musical "The Unsinkable Molly Brown" in a nod to his first spacecraft, the Liberty Bell 7, sinking, resides today at the Memorial Museum in his name in Mitchell, Indiana.

Photographs courtesy the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum