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Lot 74
[Gemini IV] THE FIRST HUMAN-TAKEN PHOTOGRAPH FROM OUTER SPACE: Gemini capsule against the dark void of space Ed White, 3-7 June 1965
14 – 28 April 2025, 12:00 CEST
Paris, Avenue HocheSold for €1,536 inc. premium
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[Gemini IV] THE FIRST HUMAN-TAKEN PHOTOGRAPH FROM OUTER SPACE: Gemini capsule against the dark void of space
Ed White, 3-7 June 1965
Printed 1965.
Vintage chromogenic print on fibre-based Kodak paper [NASA image S-65-30550].
Numbered "NASA S-65-30550" in red in the top margin, with NASA caption numbered "S-65-30550" and "A Kodak Paper" watermarks on the reverse (issued by NASA Manned Spacecraft Centre, Houston, Texas).
20.3 x 25.4 cm. (8 x 10 in.)
Historical context
On June 3, 1965, Ed White became the first human to take photographs from outer space while performing the first U.S. spacewalk outside the Gemini IV spacecraft. This milestone followed John Glenn's achievement three years earlier, on February 20, 1962, when he became the first human to capture photographs from space while inside the Friendship 7 capsule. It is the sole frame officially released by NASA at the time and the best-exposed of the few pictures taken by White using a Zeiss Contarex 35mm camera mounted atop his gas-powered manoeuvring gun. The photograph also holds a special place in history as the first-ever image showing a spacecraft in its natural habitat: space itself.
Printed 1965.
Vintage chromogenic print on fibre-based Kodak paper [NASA image S-65-30550].
Numbered "NASA S-65-30550" in red in the top margin, with NASA caption numbered "S-65-30550" and "A Kodak Paper" watermarks on the reverse (issued by NASA Manned Spacecraft Centre, Houston, Texas).
20.3 x 25.4 cm. (8 x 10 in.)
Historical context
On June 3, 1965, Ed White became the first human to take photographs from outer space while performing the first U.S. spacewalk outside the Gemini IV spacecraft. This milestone followed John Glenn's achievement three years earlier, on February 20, 1962, when he became the first human to capture photographs from space while inside the Friendship 7 capsule. It is the sole frame officially released by NASA at the time and the best-exposed of the few pictures taken by White using a Zeiss Contarex 35mm camera mounted atop his gas-powered manoeuvring gun. The photograph also holds a special place in history as the first-ever image showing a spacecraft in its natural habitat: space itself.
Footnotes
During his EVA, Ed White had the rare opportunity to photograph the exterior of the spacecraft to assess any effects of launch before re-entry erased the evidence. This atmospheric photograph captures the nose and window of the Gemini IV spacecraft orbiting Earth, as White floated toward the top of the capsule where the landing system was housed.
From the mission transcript during the EVA:
004:37:47 McDivitt: Okay, do you want me to manoeuvre for you now, Ed?
004:37:50 White: No, I think you're doing fine. What I'd like to do is get all the way out, Jim, and get a picture of the whole spacecraft. I don't seem to be doing that.
004:38:00 McDivitt: Yes, I noticed that. You can't seem to get far enough away. [...]
004:41:10 White: Okay, I'm going to free drift a little bit and see if I can drift into some good picture-taking position.
004:41:16 McDivitt: Okay. Here, let me control the spacecraft ...
Watch more
CLICK HERE: NASA GEMINI IV EXTRA VEHICULAR ACTIVITY EVA BY EDWARD H. WHITE
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