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EVA to EMU

© b.w. white

In the 1960’s Extra Vehicular Activity (EVA) was a new form of exploration. After only a few years of experience nestled in a spacecraft, humans began doing the unthinkable and journeyed “outside” into the most hostile environment ever encountered. Around 1965, astronauts and cosmonauts began leaving the relative comfort of their spacecraft and attempted to work in the vacuum of space with only a special space suit to protect them. Leonov and White made the first EVA’s, and made the idea of more occurring in the future practical, but crucial advancements in technology and technique were needed. Once it was clear that man could survive the extreme cold and heat of space, with only a spacesuit for protection, it was necessary to prove that they could work their as well.

From almost the beginning of space exploration it was clear, before it was even attempted, that floating around outside the capsule just wasn’t enough. Astronaut’s had to be able to precisely maneuver and conduct delicate operations if man was to work on the surface of the moon or repair or construct hardware in Earth orbit.

During Ed White’s historic spacewalk on June 3, 1965 he used the handheld hydrogen filled gun called the Handheld Self Maneuvering Unit (HHSMU) to help him maneuver while he was tethered to his Gemini 4 spacecraft. White reported that he had a fair amount of success with the gun and moving around. NASA thought they had EVA beat, but there thinking was a little premature. During the next attempts at EVA over the two-year Gemini program, EVA was proving to be a problem. On Gemini 9 Gene Cernan struggled to control his movement. He labored to the point of almost complete exhaustion just to turn a few bolts with a special wrench. On Gemini 11, Richard Gordon had the same problems with exhaustion and controlling his movement. At the time, EVA was beginning to look like a real obstacle. However, with the help of astronaut Buzz Aldrin, the philosophy of spacewalking was reassessed by the time of the final mission of Gemini, Gemini 12. These changes gave confidence that EVA could be reasonably mastered. This was necessary because by Apollo, astronauts would have to be able to EVA proficiently. By April, 1969 Rusty Schweikart tested a non-tethered suit was tested in Earth orbit. In July this same type of suit would be helping man walk on the moon unhindered.