Word: geminis
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...first important maneuver. By firing his aft thrusters at just the right moment for just the right length of time, he gave his craft a "kick in the apogee" and moved it into an even more precise orbit. Curving between 107 and 217 miles above the earth, Gemini was now ready for its next test: release of the 76-Ib. Radar Evaluation Pod (REP). Fitted with bright, flashing lights and radar transponders, the REP would be an orbiting target for a carefully planned attempt to check the techniques of docking vehicles in space...
...even before REP could be released, there was an ominous hint that the mission might be going sour once more. In the final minutes of the first revolution, as Gemini 5 came within range of the Guaymas tracking station in Mexico, Astronaut Pete Conrad made a calm, almost routine report. The pressure, he said, was dropping in the fuel cells' oxygen supply. The gauge that normally should have read 800 to 900 Ibs. per sq. in. was dropping fast. Since the fuel cells were the main source of power for the spacecraft's communications, computer and environment control...
...untried in orbit, fuel cells were installed in Gemini 5 because they were smaller and lighter than the conventional batteries used on all previous space flights. Unlike conventional batteries, they can supply electricity for as long as they are fed their fuel−an ideal trait for long-duration power supplies. They produce electricity through the continuous chemical reaction of oxygen and hydrogen, and in the process they form water, a most valuable byproduct...
...turn to gas, build up pressure and push themselves into the cells. And those heaters are among the least complicated devices on the spacecraft: a filament of gold-plated wire curving around the tank. The same type of device is a veteran of all the manned Mer cury and Gemini flights, being used to convert liquid oxygen into gas for the astronauts to breathe. When oxygen pressure started falling in Gemini 5, it was a sure sign that for some reason electricity was not heating that vital filament...
Still Safe. Gemini soared into its second orbit. Over Africa, Cooper ejected the Radar Evaluation Pod precisely on schedule. Though the spring release tossed it out a little harder than anticipated, the mission still seemed safe...