posted 06-18-2021 04:54 AM               

I have just resumed completing the draft for Gemini 5 after earlier this month finished another project which took most of my time over the past 18-24 months. That project involved cooperating with a new author on his first book with Springer and which required a more hands-on guidance role than I envisaged thus delaying the production of Gemini 5, which I have now resumed work on to complete as my next title.

The official cover for Gemini 5:

Certainly, the current global pandemic has affected physical book sales from shops, and therefore after discussions with Springer, it was agreed to combine Gemini 6 and 7 as originally envisaged but also include Gemini 8 in one book. Fortunately, I was able to agree on an increase in the total page number significantly for this and future titles to reflect the changing situation.

Here is the working draft cover for Gemini 6, 7 and 8, though this may change closer to publication.

Work continues on the remaining flights, Gemini 9 through 12, now also under one cover instead of separate titles initially planned. This is certainly regrettable but necessary. On the positive side, there will be far more pages in this title than those in each of the original three books in the series (Gemini 1-3, Gemini 4 and Gemini 5) feature. Here is the working cover for that title:

These changes offer also the opportunity for me to explore other aspects of the Gemini programme in the future.

In the meantime, after Gemini 5, I will be completing a couple of other outstanding titles whilst still compiling the remaining Gemini books, information on these will be released as they progress.

I do sincerely apologise for the delay in completing the series and the changes required by the changing marketplace.

You can rest assured there will be very little left out of the new format titles that were originally planned for the individual books.

posted 06-18-2021 12:12 PM            

I might add that his "Walking in Space" obviously has a lot of Gemini material.

posted 06-18-2021 03:26 PM               

The "groupings" that you have for the post-Gemini 5 books are most logical. Geminis 6, 7 and 8 comprise the core of what Project Gemini was about, long duration flight, rendezvous and docking. Geminis 9, 10, 11, and 12 addressed the EVA issue and our need to understand how to perform it, not to mention refining our rendezvous techniques.

posted 06-19-2021 10:52 AM               

In regards to interest in the Chicago area, I still possess all the pages of Chicago's four major newspapers devoted to the Gemini missions. Curiously, the collection of pages I have covering the Gemini 5 mission is just as thick as the ones covering the Gemini 4 mission, this despite the fact that Gemini 5 was twice as long as Gemini 4.

posted 08-26-2021 02:21 PM               

In my research I found reference to the daily change of shift Flight Director press conferences being held in Building 6, which was off-site of MSC just outside the front gate. This was used as the onsite auditorium (Building 2) was not large enough to hold all the accredited media. So clearly there was still a large interest in the flight.

As for the question of the third edition of the spaceflight log, I am continuing the compilation of each entry with the view of offering the publication to Springer. Originally my brother Mike and I had planned to cover the flights from 2012 to 2020 [end of a decade], but currently we plan cover missions up to the end of to 2022 offering a ten year update. More details will be released when we have a more firm production plan.

At present I am putting the finishing touches to the Gemini 5 draft and propose to complete other contracted books first, details of which will be forthcoming as they are completed.