Preliminary Gemini 4 Crew Debriefing, Part I, 1965

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CONFtDENTl;ttt-
I didn ' t think there would be any aerodynamics
at 400 000 feet .
But it was turned around 180
degrees and was perfectly stable with the whip
antenna sticking out, which at that iime was up
to the right.
White
Yes.
McDivitt
We were upside down.
It sure was a funny look~
ing sight.
White
It sure was. It was really pretty.
McDivitt
And it was as stable as a rock and very slowly
d:t'ifting behind us .
As a matter of fact, for
a while I thought that our opening velocities
were too slow, and I thought it would just
come back and hit us.
But, it just stayed out
there, and we started our rolling reentry there.
We were coming on down and we were rolling
around and before I got any noticeable g ' s at
all--Isn' t that right--before we got any notice­
able g ' s it s t arted burning?
White
Okay.
We saw the reddish pink layer come a­
round the spacecraft--
McDivitt
Well, didn ' t we see the retropack start burning
before the­ - ?
-CONFtDENllM