Liftoff of Gemini 5

Gemini 5 lifts off carrying Gordon Cooper and Pete Conrad on an eight-day endurance flight designed to prove astronauts could survive long enough in space for a round trip to the Moon. The mission flew under the slogan 'Eight Days or Bust' and tested the fuel cells that would power later Gemini and Apollo spacecraft, though a pressure drop in the system forced the crew to power down non-essential systems for much of the flight.