The History Of Live Pool Splashdown Coverage…Part 1A

Our friend Jodie Peeler has written a great three part story on this subject with lots of detail, linked video and photos that I am proud to present here. Unlike today, bringing live television pictures from a ship at sea was a whole new ballgame and in this series, we’ll learn how it was done. More details on the photos, so click on all four included this this post. Thank You Jodie! Bobby Ellerbee

As NASA committed to its manned spaceflights taking place in the open before the eyes of the world, there came the problem of how to cover each mission’s end. The earliest flights took place before commercial TV satellites were a reality, and the best the networks could do was station a reporter aboard the recovery ship to provide voice reports; later, film or videotape of the splashdown and recovery would be shown by the networks.

This changed in late 1965 when the networks, with the help of COMSAT and ITT, finally had the capability to beam live television from the recovery ship via Early Bird. The system was ready to go for the planned October 1965 flight of Gemini 6, and a large satellite dish was temporarily mounted on the flight deck of the prime recovery ship, the aircraft carrier USS Wasp. Gemini 6 was postponed, however, when its rendezvous target vehicle was lost after launch. Instead, NASA decided to launch Gemini 7 in December 1965 and send Gemini 6A to meet up with it, the first rendezvous by two manned American spacecraft and an important step on the way to the Moon. With USS Wasp still selected as prime recovery ship, the seagoing earth station got a spectacular debut: Gemini 6’s return on December 16, and Gemini 7’s two days later. Both splashdowns were carried live by the networks, with pool coverage from Dallas Townsend and Bernard Eismann.

Here’s the first moment when CBS carried live pictures from the recovery ship, during the Dec. 12, 1965 launch attempt of Gemini 6A:

http://youtu.be/E9QVgFCe4b4?t=4m13s

Here’s where the CBS splashdown coverage of Gemini 6A begins:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6L3idPfHsVc

And the moment when Gemini 6A astronauts Schirra and Stafford emerged from the spacecraft aboard USS Wasp:

http://youtu.be/ZGpAHvrap5M?t=5m01s

Although there were technical problems still to be resolved, and although the picture was lost at a few points, the first live “splashcast” demonstrated it could be done. The lessons learned will form the basis of the second part, as the historic Apollo missions to the Moon approached.

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