Static test, highest lift so far recorded, 985 lb.

NACA flight 3. Turns and pull-ups to buffet. Mach 0.74.

The engine begins oscillatory combustion at 20 seconds and explodes violently at 34 seconds. The explosion is visible 40 km from the LRBA test site at Vernon.

The Army Ordnance Missile Command (AOMC), the Air Force, and missile contractors presented to the ARPA-NASA Large Booster Review Committee their views on the quickest and surest way for the United States to attain large booster capability. The Committee decided that the Juno V approach advocated by AOMC was best and NASA started plans to utilize the Juno V booster.

A meeting was held at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Headquarters to discuss the method for spacecraft heat protection. Two plans were considered: beryllium heat sink and ablation. Based on this meeting a decision was made to modify the spacecraft structure in order to accomodate interchangeably ablation heat shields and beryllium heat sinks , and orders were placed for 12 and 6, respectively. The material chosen for the ablation heat was Fiberglas bonded with a modified phenolic resin. This material was found to have good structural properties even after being subjected to reentry heating.

The Manned Lunar Landing Task Group (Low Committee) set up by the Space Exploration Program Council was instructed to prepare a position paper for the NASA Fiscal Year 1962 budget presentation to Congress. The paper was to be a concise statement of NASA's lunar program for Fiscal Year 1962 and was to present the lunar mission in term of both direct ascent and rendezvous. The rendezvous program would be designed to develop a manned spacecraft capability in near space, regardless of whether such a technique would be needed for manned lunar landing. In addition to answering such questions as the reason for not eliminating one of the two mission approaches, the Group was to estimate the cost of the lunar mission and the date of its accomplishment, though not in specific terms. Although the decision to land a man on the moon had not been approved, it was to be stressed that the development of the scientific and technical capability for a manned lunar landing was a prime NASA goal, though not the only one. The first meeting of the Group was to be held on January 9.

Although some retesting began shortly after the Gemini-Titan 2 mission was scrubbed on December 9, 1964, most activity in preparing GLV-2 for another launch attempt was curtailed until the new actuators arrived. Subsystems retesting then began. The final combined systems test - the Simulated Flight Test - was completed January 14, with launch scheduled for January 19.

There is much criticism of Mishin and Keldysh for not attending launches any longer. The opinion is that they are afraid to show their faces.

Start long-lead fabrication aft fuselage (STA-099)

Launched from Cape Parry, PIN Main DEW, Inuvik Region, Northwest Territory, Canada - Latitude: 70.17 N - Longitude: 124.72 W.

Replaced Cosmos 655. Possible ELINT satellite.

High resolution photo reconnaissance satellite; returned film capsule; maneuverable.

Acquisition of meteorological information needed for use by the weather service.

High resolution photo reconnaissance satellite; returned film capsule; maneuverable.

Photo surveillance; returned film capsule.

First test of the modified 3M bomber, converted to carry piggy-back Energia core stage components and Buran orbiters.

The official Chinese Liberation Daily reported that a Chinese manned flight would take place "by the end of this century or the beginning of the next," . This would make China the first country in more than 30 years to join the United States and Russia in the exclusive club of manned mission launchers.

China reported that the four Yuan Wang tracking ships celebrated the New Year on remote oceans. Yuan Wang 1 and 2 were in the Pacific Ocean, Yuan Wang 4 had arrived in the Indian Ocean, and Yuan Wang 3 was en route to the Atlantic Ocean.

Coriolis was an Air Force Space Test Program three-year meteorological science mission to demonstrate the viability of using polarimetry to measure ocean surface wind speed and direction from space, and to demonstrate predictions of geomagnetic disturbances through continuous observation of Coronal Mass Ejections. Launch delayed from August 22, November 15, December 15, 16, 17 and 18, 2002 and January 5, 2003.