Gemini 3 Mission Patch

Gemini 3 Mission Patch

This Gemini 3 mission patch was designed to commemorate the first crewed Gemini mission, flown by astronauts Gus Grissom and John Young.

The design includes the astronaut's names, as well as a Gemini spacecraft underneath the 'GT-3' label - which refers to Gemini and Titan, with Titan being the launch vehicle. At the bottom of the patch is the name 'Molly Brown', which is the name the crew picked for their spacecraft. Grissom had previously flown aboard the Mercury 4 mission Liberty Bell 7. At the end of his mission the spacecraft sank, after a hatch opened too early after splashdown. In reference to this Grissom chose the name Molly Brown for his later Gemini mission, which refers to the Broadway musical, 'The Unsinkable Molly Brown' - based on the life of the famous Titanic survivor Molly Brown. NASA officials did not like the joke name, but after Grissom said his second choice name was Titanic, they backed down and settled on Molly Brown.

This particular patch was part of a collection of patches acquired by British-born professor of endocrine and metabolic surgery Anthony Goode, during his years working with NASA’s Life Sciences Division.