Sample, Heat Shield, Gemini 8, Acrylic Case, Neil Armstrong

This heat shield sample from Gemini VIII, encased in an acrylic model of the spacecraft, was owned by Neil A. Armstrong. The ablative heat shield would have protected the crew of Gemini VIII, commander Neil Armstrong and pilot David Scott, from the aerodynamic heating incurred during high-speed reentry into the astmosphere. The mission, which launched in March 1966, was part of the larger Gemini program to devleop and test procedures that would be essential for a sucessful moon landing. Gemini VIII was the first to dock with the unpiloted Agena Target Vehicle, but after docking the spacecraft began spinning uncontrollably due to a stuck thruster, a problem which became worse with undocking. Armstrong was able to stablilize the dangerous situation by activating the Reentry Control System, but this necessitated an early termination of the misison.

Neil Armstrong, Commander of Apollo 11, became the first person to walk on the Moon on July 20, 1969. Prior to joining NASA, Armstrong served as a naval aviator during the Korean War, flying 78 combat missions. After graduating with a B.S. in Aeronautical Engineering from Purdue University in 1955, Armstrong became a test pilot for the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA, the forerunner to NASA) and flew over 200 different models of aircraft, including the X-15. Armstrong was selected for NASA’s astronaut corps in 1962 as part of the second class selection, and first flew in space as commander of Gemini VIII in 1966.

Shortly after his historic Apollo 11 mission in 1969, Armstrong earned an M.S. in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Southern California, and when he left NASA in 1971, he taught at the University of Cincinnati for eight years. In 1986, he was appointed by President Reagan as the Vice-Chairman of the Rogers Commission investigating the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster. In his later life, he served on several corporate boards and high-level advisory committees.

Carol Armstrong and the Armstrong family loaned the heat shield sample to the Museum in 2014.