Apollo 9

Spacecraft· NASAinactive

Apollo 9 — the first crewed test of the Lunar Module (March 1969), flown in Earth orbit where 'Spider' and 'Gumdrop' separated, rendezvoused and redocked.

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Key facts

Distance from Sun

1.01 AU

Status

Completed

Launched

1969

Mission & specifications

Mission

Operator: NASA
Launched: March 3, 1969
Status: Completed

Trajectory

Distance from the Sun: 1.01 AU
Distance from Earth: 387,570 km
Distance from Venus: 0.646 AU

Mission

Apollo 9 was the first crewed test of the complete Apollo spacecraft — and, crucially, of the Lunar Module that would actually land on the Moon. Launched on 3 March 1969, James McDivitt, David Scott and Russell Schweickart spent ten days in Earth orbit putting the lander through its paces, safely close to home. For the first time a crewed Lunar Module flew free of the Command Module: McDivitt and Schweickart powered up the spidery craft they nicknamed 'Spider', undocked from the Command Module 'Gumdrop', and flew up to 180 kilometres away before rendezvousing and redocking — proving the lander could fly, separate and return, the manoeuvre on which every Moon landing would depend. Schweickart also stepped outside to test the Apollo spacesuit's self-contained life-support backpack, the system astronauts would wear on the lunar surface. Apollo 9 was not glamorous, but it was indispensable: it validated the one spacecraft that had never carried a crew, and that could be tested nowhere but in space.

1969Apollo 9 reaches orbitLaunch
A 10-day Earth-orbit test of the complete spacecraft, including the first crewed Lunar Module.
1969Testing the lunar spacesuitSpacewalk / EVA
Schweickart steps outside to test the self-contained life-support backpack astronauts will wear on the Moon.
1969'Spider' flies freeMilestone
The crewed Lunar Module undocks and flies up to 180 km away before redocking — proving the lander can fly and return.
1969SplashdownMission end
Apollo 9 validates the lander in Earth orbit, the last test before flying it to the Moon.

Images

The Lunar Module 'Spider' flying free in Earth orbit — NASA (public domain) · Wikimedia Commons

Astronaut James A. McDivitt on deck of ship prior to water egress training — NASA/JSC · NASA Image Library

Astronaut David R. Scott on deck of ship prior to water egress training — NASA/JSC · NASA Image Library

Apollo 9 prime crew on deck of ship prior to water egress training — NASA/JSC · NASA Image Library

Apollo 9 backup crew on "Retriever"-Ships — NASA/JSC · NASA Image Library

Pararescueman helps Apollo 9 Command Module Pilot David R — NASA or National Aeronautics and Space Administration · NASA Image Library

Apollo 9 Mission image - S0-65 Multispectral Photography - Texas — NASA/JSC · NASA Image Library

Apollo 9 Mission image - S0-65 Multispectral Photography - California — NASA/JSC · NASA Image Library

Images from open archives · credit shown per image