White Walks Space: America's First EVA
Ed White became the first American to walk in space on June 3, 1965, during the Gemini 4 mission, floating outside the spacecraft for 23 minutes while tethered by a 25-foot umbilical cord. He used a hand-held maneuvering unit that expelled compressed oxygen to propel himself. Soviet cosmonaut Alexei Leonov had completed the first spacewalk just ten weeks earlier, on March 18. White was so exhilarated by the experience that he had to be ordered back inside the capsule, calling it "the saddest moment of my life." The spacewalk demonstrated that astronauts could work outside their spacecraft, an essential capability for the Apollo moon landing program. White died in the Apollo 1 fire on January 27, 1967, along with Gus Grissom and Roger Chaffee, during a launch pad test.
June 3, 1965
61 years ago
Key Figures & Places
What Else Happened on June 3
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