Gemini XI pushed the boundaries of human spaceflight higher than ever before. Launched on September 12, 1966, from Cape Kennedy Launch Complex 19, the mission carried Command Pilot Charles “Pete” Conrad Jr. and Pilot Richard “Dick” Gordon into orbit aboard a Titan II GLV rocket. Their primary goals were ambitious: achieve the first rendezvous and docking on the very first orbit, boost to a record-breaking altitude using the Agena’s propulsion system, and experiment with tethered vehicle operations.

The first-orbit rendezvous was a critical demonstration. Future Apollo lunar missions would require quick rendezvous capability, and Gemini XI proved it could be done. Within 94 minutes of launch, Conrad had guided the spacecraft to a successful docking with the Agena Target Vehicle that had been launched earlier the same day. It was the fastest rendezvous yet achieved in the space program.

With the Agena docked, Conrad fired its powerful propulsion system to boost the joined vehicles to an apogee of 850 miles above Earth — the highest altitude ever reached by a crewed spacecraft at the time, a record that would stand until Apollo 8 went to the Moon. From this vantage point, the crew could clearly see the curvature of the Earth and captured stunning photographs showing the planet against the blackness of space. Richard Gordon performed a 33-minute standup EVA, though like his predecessors he found the work exhausting and was forced to end early due to sweat stinging his eyes.

The mission also tested a 100-foot Dacron tether connecting Gemini XI to the Agena. By firing thrusters to set the tethered pair slowly rotating, the crew demonstrated a small amount of artificial gravity — the first time this had ever been achieved in space. The gravity gradient stabilization experiment showed that two tethered vehicles could maintain a stable orientation. After nearly three days in orbit, Gemini XI splashed down in the Atlantic Ocean on September 15, 1966, just 4.8 kilometers from the target point — the most accurate landing of the Gemini program to date. The crew was recovered by the USS Guam.