Page 41 - Curriculum Visions Dynamic Book

The actual first docking was by Gemini 8, but it had problems, as did Gemini 9. During the space walk of Gemini 9, in which Gene Cernan tried to detach a part that had got stuck, astronauts had their first experience of gravity not being there to help them push against an object. As Newton’s laws of motion state, an action is met by an equal and opposite reaction. As Cernan went to touch something, the reaction force bounced him away from it.
It was Gemini 10 that actually docked first, using an Agena rocket. The rocket was then used to boost the altitude of Gemini into a new orbit, a maneuver crucial to further developments in space travel.
gravity The force of attraction between bodies.
heat shield A protective device on the outside of a space vehicle that absorbs the heat during reentry and protects it from burning up.
laws of motion Formulated by Sir Isaac Newton, they describe the forces that act on a moving object.
reaction An opposition to a force.
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 The recovery phase after
the landing of Gemini 7. This picture gives a clear insight into the amount of space each astronaut had, together with their positions in the capsule. Notice also the large hatches for ease of entry and exit, both on the ground and in space during an EVA.