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1965: Human Satellite
The first U.S. spacewalk, on Gemini 4 in June 1965, was surprisingly easy, almost playful at times. Mission control couldn’t hear Ed White very well—there was a problem with his microphone. So crewmate Jim McDivitt narrated the action while White drifted on his 25-foot tether and admired the view. When White planted his boots on the tiny spacecraft, McDivitt laughed, “You’re smearing up my windshield, you dirty dog.” White propelled himself with a little “zip gun” that fired compressed gas. He loved it—so much so that McDivitt had to badger him to come back inside. The whole thing lasted just 36 minutes. Gemini 9, on the other hand, was nearly a disaster. Gene Cernan worked so hard trying to get into an Air Force-built jet backpack called the Astronaut Maneuvering Unit that the exertion made his helmet visor fog up, and he had to cut the spacewalk short. Problems with this and later Gemini EVAs sent NASA back to the drawing board to redesign the suit and hatch and make other fixes. By the time of Buzz Aldrin’s three Gemini 12 outings in November 1966, EVA had become a science. Many of the spacewalking procedures in use today were developed during the Gemini program.

NASA

<b>1965: Human Satellite</b><br><br />The first U.S. spacewalk, on Gemini 4 in June 1965, was surprisingly easy, almost playful at times. Mission control couldn’t hear Ed White very well—there was a problem with his microphone. So crewmate Jim McDivitt narrated the action while White drifted on his 25-foot tether and admired the view. When White planted his boots on the tiny spacecraft, McDivitt laughed, “You’re smearing up my windshield, you dirty dog.” White propelled himself with a little “zip gun” that fired compressed gas. He loved it—so much so that McDivitt had to badger him to come back inside. The whole thing lasted just 36 minutes.<br />Gemini 9, on the other hand, was nearly a disaster. Gene Cernan worked so hard trying to get into an Air Force-built jet backpack called the Astronaut Maneuvering Unit that the exertion made his helmet visor fog up, and he had to cut the spacewalk short. Problems with this and later Gemini EVAs sent NASA back to the drawing board to redesign the suit and hatch and make other fixes. By the time of Buzz Aldrin’s three Gemini 12 outings in November 1966, EVA had become a science. Many of the spacewalking procedures in use today were developed during the Gemini program.<br />