Chapter 7
The Darkest Hour
[139] The easing of Gemini's managerial problems by
mid-1963 opened the way for a concerted attack on Gemini's technical problems.
Even under new management, however, the last half of the year saw Project Gemini
at its lowest ebb. The Gemini spacecraft, the Agena target vehicle, and, most
seriously, the Titan II launch vehicle - each raised problems that threatened to
overwhelm the program. This was to be Gemini's darkest hour, and it began with
another dual flight that raised new fears of a Soviet victory in the race for
first space rendezvous. On 14 June, Lieutenant Colonel V. F. Bykovsky orbited
aboard Vostok V. Cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova followed two days later
in Vostok VI. The two passed within five kilometers of each other. Once
again, however, there was a crumb of hope in the Vostok's lack of maneuvering
capability. It was a faint hope.1
1 Astronautics and Aeronautics, 1963: Chronology on
Science, Technology, and Policy, NASA SP-4004 (Washington, 1964), pp. 241, 244;
Henry Tanner, "Record in Space Set by Bykovsky," The New York Times, 19 June
1963; Jonathan Spivak, "U.S. Scientists Believe Launching Error Aborted Soviet
Plan for Space Rendezvous," The Wall Street Journal, 19 June 1963.
