Astronaut David R. Scott, command module pilot for the Apollo 9 Earth-orbital mission, stands in the command module’s open hatch during his stand-up spacewalk on March 6, 1969. Astronaut Russell L. Schweickart, lunar module pilot, took this photograph of Scott while also performing a spacewalk. He was positioned on the porch of the lunar module (LM), while astronaut James A. McDivitt, was inside the LM.
Apollo 9 was the first crewed flight of the command/service module along with the lunar module. The mission’s three-person crew tested several aspects critical to landing on the Moon including the lunar module’s engines, backpack life support systems, navigation systems, and docking maneuvers. Apollo 9 set the stage for the next step — Apollo 10 — a test mission that occurred about 70 miles above the Moon’s surface.
See more photos from Apollo 9.
Image Credit: NASA/Russell L. Schweickart
