Molly Brown America's First

A white background with blue text at top and bottom with red text on the right and left outer edges and two photographs of astronauts heads in space helmets with blue and red text underneath.

Gemini 3 was nicknamed "The Unsinkable Molly Brown" or just plain "Molly Brown", after a popular Broadway show of the time period.The nickname was coined by the mission's pilot, Gus Grissom, who was accompanied on the flight by John Young. On March 23, 1965 the Molly Brown was launched from Cape Canaveral, went into orbit, and became the first spacecraft to change its orbit. The crew performed radiation and cell growth experiments while in orbit. Later that day, the vessel landed in the Atlantic Ocean and was recovered by the USS Intrepid.

Read more about the History of NASA buttons on the Busy Beaver blog.