Transcript: 11-15 September

PAUL
Welcome to Idaho Skies on Radio Boise. This is the second week of September. We're your hosts, Paul..

RACHEL
..Rachel..

KRIS
..And Kris

PAUL
Forty years ago on the 12th, astronauts Charles Conrad and Richard Gordon were rocketed into space.

KRIS
Conrad and Gordon were launched onboard the two-man Gemini 11. This was the second to last Gemini mission.

RACHEL
The goals of Gemini 11 were to dock with a second spacecraft and practice spacewalking.

KRIS
Their docking with the Agena rocket was very successful and again demonstrated that the Apollo astronauts would be able to successfully dock.

RACHEL
The Agena carried its own rocket engine. So after docking with it, the Gemini 11 astronauts fired its engine and placed themselves into a much higher orbit.

KRIS
They reached an altitude of over 800 miles. That's higher than any astronauts have every orbited the earth. Only the Apollo astronauts have traveled higher.

RACHEL
While the docking worked as planned, the same cannot be said about their spacewalk.

KRIS
Space walks, or EVAs, were far more difficult than NASA anticipated.

RACHEL
EVA stands for extravehicular activity and the term sounds far more professional than space walking.

KRIS
The reason EVAs were so difficult is that the Gemini space suits were not nearly flexible enough once they were pressurized.

RACHEL
Also the environmental controls inside the suit were primitive compared to the Apollo and Space Shuttle suits.

KRIS
Because of their spacesuit's stiffness, Gemini astronauts had to exert a lot of effort just to do simple tasks.

RACHEL
Every time they bent am arm or leg, it decreased the volume of their spacesuit and increased its pressure resisting their bending.

PAUL
The astronauts could get dangerously hot trying to move around in their suits if they weren't careful.

KRIS
Because of the coldness of space, the visors of their space helmets would fog up from their perspiration, making it difficult to see.

RACHEL
Today's Space Shuttle astronauts wear a water cooled garment beneath their far more flexible space suits.

KRIS
So Shuttle astronauts can easily work for eight hours in their space suits. That's far better then the Gemini astronauts of forty years ago.

PAUL
But the Space Shuttle suits are not designed for walking on moons or planets.

RACHEL
That's because their boots are not durable enough and their back packs are too heavy.

KRIS
So NASA is working on new designs for planetary suits.

RACHEL
These will be lighter and have easy to maintain features.

KRIS
That's important when you consider how abrasive the dust on the moon and Mars will be to things like zippers.

PAUL
The moon is at last quarter on the morning of the 14th.

RACHEL
Therefore the moon is only visible after midnight and it sets by noon.

KRIS
That's perfect for next week's star party at the Craters of the Moon.

PAUL
It's held on Friday and Saturday, the 22nd and 23rd.

RACHEL
You can find out more information at the Idaho Falls Astronomical Society website, www.IFAstro.org.

KRIS
The star party is free once you pay admission to the park.

RACHEL
That's Idaho Skies for the second week of September. Join us next week to learn about the Zodiacal Light and Autumnal Equinox.

For Idaho Skies this is Rachel.

PAUL
..Paul..

KRIS
.. and Kris.