GEMINI HARDWAREThe Gemini capsule was a scaled-up version of the bell-shaped, blunt-ended Mercury capsule. It had 50 percent more cabin space and weighed more than twice as much, about 3,640 kg (8,000 lb). Including its reentry, retrograde, and adapter sections, the vehicle was about 5.8 m (19 ft) long and 3 m (10 ft) wide at its base. The reentry module consisted of the cabin, which contained two couches side-by-side, and a cylindrical nose containing the docking mechanism and parachutes. Behind it was the retrograde section, which contained an array of four retro-rockets to be fired in quick succession to decelerate the spacecraft for reentry. The adapter section at the rear contained the 16 engines of the Orbital Attitude and Maneuvering System (OAMS), the fuel-cell electric-power supply, and reserve oxygen. The retro-rockets and adapter were jettisoned at reentry.The Gemini spacecraft were launched by the Titan 2 ICBM, a two-stage rocket that was more powerful than the Atlas ICBM used in the Mercury program. To reenter, the crew separated the forward, or reentry, section from the adapter section and fired four retro-rockets of 11,100 newtons (1,100 kg/2,500 lb) of thrust each. The capsule, which was stabilized by an eight-thruster reentry control system (RCS), was designed to have lift in the high atmosphere. The pilot could control the landing point within a limited area by rolling the vehicle. The final descent was made by parachute.