extravehicular activity (space flight)

The author chronicles his years as a NASA astronaut from his time in training to the ultimate moment in his career spent sky walking. Features a section of color photographs, an appendix of mission statistics, and a glossary of space terms.

Describes the Gemini 4 mission in 1965 when astronauts Edward White and James McDivitt carried out the first extravehicular activity in the United States manned space program.

Looks at what is involved in taking a space walk, explaining how astronauts train for the experience, describing the suits they wear to keep them safe outside the space craft, and discussing the types of work that are done during space walks.

Describes the training and preparation for spacewalking, the hazards faced by astronauts, as well as the construction of spacesuits.

Photographs and text describe how astronauts walk in space from the 1960s to the present.

Describes the work of Project Gemini, the 1960s space program that helped U.S. astronauts develop space survival skills, and includes color photos of Gemini's training and 1965 mission.

Discusses Project Gemini's two unmanned and ten manned missions; spacewalking, the spacewalkers, and their Soviet counterparts; and moving on to Project Apollo and the moon.