Sixty years ago today, on December 4, 1965 (November 12, 1965 lunar calendar), the United States launched the Gemini VII spacecraft. On December 4, 1965 at 19:30 international standard time, the United States launched the Gemini VII satellite spacecraft on a Hercules II rocket from Cape Kennedy. There were two astronauts on board the spacecraft: Borman and Lovell. The spacecraft weighed 3,289 kilograms. The spacecraft entered orbit six minutes after launch and circled the earth once at 21:06 international standard time. Its perigee was 161 kilometers and its apogee was 325 kilometers. The spacecraft was scheduled to operate for 14 days to study the effects of long-term weightlessness on the human body. Astronauts will perform a variety of different experiments during their flight, including the first communication with the ground in space using Lesser light.