Apollo 9 and more: Astronaut Jim McDivitt's legacy in 10 images

In Memoriam The former commander of two pivotal NASA missions passed away this month. by Jennifer Walter Updated: Feb. 20, 2024 Originally Published: Oct. 18, 2022 Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group/Getty Images

NASA via Wikimedia Commons On Monday, NASA announced that former astronaut Jim McDivitt died at the age of 93.

McDivitt played a pivotal role in two major NASA missions in the 1960s. He was commander of Gemini IV , where he rocketed to space with Ed White, the astronaut who completed the first U.S. spacewalk in 1965. HUM Images/Universal Images Group/Getty Images

And in 1969, McDivitt commanded the Apollo 9 test flight around Earth that paved the way for astronauts to land on the Moon.

He left a legacy that shaped space exploration as we know it today.

Smith Collection/Gado/Archive Photos/Getty Images McDivitt spent more than 14 days off Earth over the course of his career.

NASA Here are 10 images from McDivitt’s monumental missions:

NASA/Jim McDivitt 10. McDivitt captured this portrait of astronaut Ed White during the first U.S. spacewalk in 1965.

9. This famous image of White outside the Gemini IV spacecraft was also taken by McDivitt.

8. After their capsule splashed down in the Atlantic Ocean, McDivitt (front) and Ed White were carried to land via helicopter. Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group/Getty Images

7. McDivitt and White speak with president Lyndon B. Johnson after arriving back on Earth.

Heritage Images/Hulton Archive/Getty Images

HUM Images/Universal Images Group/Getty Images 6. McDivitt (left) and astronauts David Scott and Russell Schweickart suit up for a simulated flight before the launch of Apollo 9.

5. Apollo 9 lifts off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center on March 3, 1969. NASA

NASA 4. Two of Apollo 9’s modules are docked here, with Scott in the center.

3. McDivitt captured this image of Schweickart outside on the “porch” of Apollo 9’s lunar module. NASA/Jim McDivitt

2. Here, the lunar module floats in orbit with Earth in view.

1. On March 13, 1969, the Apollo 9 crew safely splashed down in the Atlantic Ocean.