humanoidhistory: March 13, 1969 — After a mission in Earth orbit lasting 10 days, 1 hour, 54 seconds
humanoidhistory: March 13, 1969 — After a mission in Earth orbit lasting 10 days, 1 hour, 54 seconds, Apollo 9 astronauts Jim McDivitt, Dave Scott, and Rusty Schweickart splashed down in the North Atlantic only 4.5 nautical miles from the USS Guadalcanal recovery ship. Concluding a few months before the launch of the Apollo 11 moon shot, Apollo 9 was a critical practice run for landing on the Moon; they tested the LM engines, backpack life support systems, navigation systems, and docking maneuvers. (NASA) -- source link