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Project Mercury

The first human spaceflight program of the United States.Created by: PICRYL - Public Domain Media Search EngineDated: 2017
Mercury Project Madison County Alabama
The Space Race began with a shock to the American public when the Soviet satellite Sputnik was launched in 1957.
United states created NASA accelerate U.S. space exploration efforts and launched the Explorer 1 satellite in 1958.
The Soviet Union was first again when it puts the first human, cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, into a single orbit on April 12, 1961. Shortly after this, on May 5, the U.S. launched Alan Shepard, on a suborbital flight and reached its orbital goal on February 20, 1962, when John Glenn made three orbits around the Earth in the Mercury capsule.
The Mercury space capsule was a pressurized cabin produced by McDonnell Aircraft and carried supplies of water, food, and oxygen for about one day. Mercury was launched on a top of modified Atlas D ballistic missiles.
The capsule was fitted with a launch escape rocket to carry it safely away from the launch vehicle in case of a failure. Small retrorockets were used to bring the spacecraft out of its orbit, after which an ablative heat shield protected it from the heat of atmospheric reentry. Finally, a parachute slowed the craft for a water landing. Both astronaut and capsule were recovered by helicopters deployed from a U.S. Navy ship.
The Mercury project missions were followed by millions on radio and TV around the world. Its success laid the groundwork for Project Gemini, which carried two astronauts in each capsule and perfected space docking maneuvers essential for manned lunar landings in the Apollo program announced just a few weeks after the first manned Mercury launch.
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Mercury Project, NASA history collection

Mercury Project, NASA history collection

A Mercury-Redstone launch vehicle awaits test-firing in the Redstone Test Stand during the late 1950s. Between 1953 and 1960, the rocket team at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Alabama performed hundreds of tes... More

Mercury Project Freedom 7 Mercury spacecraft

Mercury Project Freedom 7 Mercury spacecraft

Astronaut Alan B. Shepard, Jr. lifts off in the Freedom 7 Mercury spacecraft on May 5, 1961. This third flight of the Mercury-Redstone (MR-3) vehicle, developed by Dr. Wernher von Braun and the rocket team in H... More

Mercury Project Friendship 7, NASA Mercury project

Mercury Project Friendship 7, NASA Mercury project

The launch of the MA-6, Friendship 7, on February 20, 1962. Boosted by the Mercury-Atlas vehicle, a modified Atlas Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM), Friendship 7 was the first U.S. marned orbital fligh... More

Ablation Test of Mercury Capsule ARC-1962-A-28917-8

Ablation Test of Mercury Capsule ARC-1962-A-28917-8

Ablation Test of Mercury Capsule Public domain photograph of NASA rocket launch, free to use, no copyright restrictions image - Picryl description

   Earth and sky views taken with hand-held camera during Mercury-Atlas 7

Earth and sky views taken with hand-held camera during Mercury-Atla...

S62-03270 (24 May 1962) --- Earth and sky views taken with hand-held camera by astronaut M. Scott Carpenter during Mercury-Atlas 7 (MA-7) mission. Photo credit: NASA

PROJECT MERCURY SUMMARY CONFERENCE - NASA - HOUSTON, TX

PROJECT MERCURY SUMMARY CONFERENCE - NASA - HOUSTON, TX

In October 1963, the Project Mercury Summary Conference was held in the Houston, TX, Coliseum. This series of 44 photos is documentation of that conference. A view of the Houston, TX, Coliseum, and ... More

Little Joe (LJ6) Launch, NASA Mercury project

Little Joe (LJ6) Launch, NASA Mercury project

Description: Launching of the LJ6 Little Joe on October 4, 1959 took place at Wallops Island, Va. This was the first attempt to launch an instrumented capsule with a Little Joe booster. Only the LJ1A and the L... More

Astronaut Virgil Grissom in new Mercury Space Suit during egress training

Astronaut Virgil Grissom in new Mercury Space Suit during egress train...

S61-03893 (26 April 1961) --- Astronaut Virgil I. (Gus) Grissom, wearing the new Mercury spacesuit, poses for a picture during emergency egress training activities at the Florida Space Center. He is seen standi... More

EXAMINATION - ASTRONAUT CARPENTER - SCHOOL OF AVIATION MEDICINE - PENSACOLA, FL

EXAMINATION - ASTRONAUT CARPENTER - SCHOOL OF AVIATION MEDICINE - PENS...

S61-04571 (1961) --- Astronaut M. Scott Carpenter's balance mechanism performance is tested as he walks a straight line by putting one foot directly in front of the other. He is performing this test at the Scho... More

Astronaut John Glenn in a State of Weightlessness During Friendship

Astronaut John Glenn in a State of Weightlessness During Friendship

(February 20, 1962) Astronaut John Glenn photographed in space by an automatic sequence motion picture camera during his flight on "Friendship 7." Glenn was in a state of weightlessness traveling at 17,500 mph ... More

Launched atop an Atlas booster, the Agena target vehicle (ATV) was a spacecraft used by NASA to develop and practice orbital space rendezvous and docking techniques in preparation for the Apollo program lunar missions. This particular launch preceded the Gemini 12, which launched aboard a Titan launch vehicle one and one half hours later. The objective was for Agena and Gemini to rendezvous in space and practice docking procedures. An intermediate step between Project Mercury and the Apollo Program, the Gemini Program's major objectives were to subject two men and supporting equipment to long duration flights, to perfect rendezvous and docking with other orbiting vehicles, methods of reentry, and landing of the spacecraft. n/a

Launched atop an Atlas booster, the Agena target vehicle (ATV) was a s...

Launched atop an Atlas booster, the Agena target vehicle (ATV) was a spacecraft used by NASA to develop and practice orbital space rendezvous and docking techniques in preparation for the Apollo program lunar m... More

NASA Photographer Prepares to Film a Mercury Capsule

NASA Photographer Prepares to Film a Mercury Capsule

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) photographer Arthur Laufman sets up a camera to film a Mercury capsule that was constructed by the Lewis Research Center staff. Lewis engineers and mechanics... More

Big Joe capsule leaves its launching pad - Mercury Project

Big Joe capsule leaves its launching pad - Mercury Project

An Atlas launch vehicle carrying the Big Joe capsule leaves its launching pad on a 2,000-mile ballistic flight to the altitude of 100 miles. The Big Joe capsule is a boilerplate model of the marned orbital caps... More

Mercury Project - The launch of the Little Joe booster for the LJ1B mission

Mercury Project - The launch of the Little Joe booster for the LJ1B mi...

The launch of the Little Joe booster for the LJ1B mission on the launch pad from the wallops Flight Facility, Wallops Island, Virginia, on January 21, 1960. This mission achieved the suborbital Mercury capsule ... More

View of Astronaut Alan Shepard inside the Freedom 7 capsule

View of Astronaut Alan Shepard inside the Freedom 7 capsule

S88-31374 (29 April 1961) --- A close-up of astronaut Alan B. Shepard Jr. in his space suit with his helmet on inside the Mercury capsule. He is undergoing a flight simulation test with the capsule mated to the... More

Astronaut Alan Shepard receives MASA Distinguished Service award

Astronaut Alan Shepard receives MASA Distinguished Service award

S88-31387 (8 May 1961) --- President John F. Kennedy (left) congratulates NASA's Distinguished Service Medal Award recipient astronaut Alan B. Shepard Jr. in a Rose Garden ceremony on May 8, 1961, at the White ... More

Astronaut John Glenn poses in Mercury Space Suit

Astronaut John Glenn poses in Mercury Space Suit

S62-00961 (20 Feb. 1962) --- Mercury astronaut John H. Glenn Jr., suited in full Mercury suit, prepares for launch. Photo credit: NASA

Portrait - Full-Lenth - Mercury Astronaut L. Gordon Cooper, Jr. - Spacesuit

Portrait - Full-Lenth - Mercury Astronaut L. Gordon Cooper, Jr. - Spac...

S63-01755 (May 1963) --- Full-length portrait of Mercury astronaut L. Gordon Cooper Jr., in spacesuit during Mercury-Atlas 9 prelaunch activities. Photo credit: NASA

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Between 1962 and 1963, the Mission Control Center was modified to handle the additional complexities of the Gemini Program. In 1962, Pan American World Airways Inc. was contracted to design an addition to the facility, which wrapped around the east, north, and most of the west and south sides.           The Mercury Mission Control Center in Florida played a key role in the United States' early spaceflight program. Located at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, the original part of the building was constructed between 1956 and 1958, with additions in 1959 and 1963. The facility officially was transferred to NASA on Dec. 26, 1963, and served as mission control during all the Project Mercury missions, as well as the first three flights of the Gemini Program, when it was renamed Mission Control Center. With its operational days behind, on June 1, 1967, the Mission Control Center became a stop on the public tour of NASA facilities until the mid-90s. In 1999, much of the equipment and furnishings from the Flight Control Area were moved to the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex where they became part of the exhibit there. The building was demolished in spring 2010. Photo credit: NASA KSC-LOC-63-5635

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Between 1962 and 1963, the Mission Control Cent...

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Between 1962 and 1963, the Mission Control Center was modified to handle the additional complexities of the Gemini Program. In 1962, Pan American World Airways Inc. was contracted to desi... More

Astronaut Alan Shepard - U.S.S. Champlain - Post-Recovery Mercury Capsule

Astronaut Alan Shepard - U.S.S. Champlain - Post-Recovery Mercury Caps...

S61-02727 (5 May 1961) --- Astronaut Alan B. Shepard is seen on the deck of the USS Lake Champlain after the recovery of his Mercury capsule in the western Atlantic Ocean. Shepard and the Mercury spacecraft des... More

Astronaut Walter Schirra gets modified calonic test

Astronaut Walter Schirra gets modified calonic test

S62-06157 (1962) --- Astronaut Walter Schirra Jr. gets modified calonic test. His balance mechanism (semicircular canals) are tested by running cool water into ear and measuring effect on eye motions (nystagmus... More

Astronaut John Glenn being Honored

Astronaut John Glenn being Honored

Full Description: On February 23, 1962, President John F. Kennedy honors John H. Glenn, Jr. at Hangar S, Cape Canaveral, Florida, after his historic three-orbit mission aboard Friendship 7.

Mercury-Atlas 1 Launch, NASA Mercury project

Mercury-Atlas 1 Launch, NASA Mercury project

(July 29, 1960) The uncrewed Mercury-Atlas 1 spacecraft launched from Cape Canaveral on July 29, 1960. MA-1 was the first attempt to launch the Mercury capsule. The mission failed just under a minute after laun... More

Mercury Project Alan Shepard, NASA Mercury project

Mercury Project Alan Shepard, NASA Mercury project

Astronaut Alan Shepard fitted with space suit prior to the first marned suborbital flight. Freedom 7, carrying Astronaut Alan Shepard, boosted by the Mercury-Redstone launch vehicle, lifted off on May 5, 1961. ... More

Jupiter-C, the first American Satellite, Explorer 1 launcher

Jupiter-C, the first American Satellite, Explorer 1 launcher

This is a comparison illustration of the Redstone, Jupiter-C, and Mercury Redstone launch vehicles. The Redstone ballistic missile was a high-accuracy, liquid-propelled, surface-to-surface missile. Originally d... More

Preparation for launch of Mercury-Atlas 9

Preparation for launch of Mercury-Atlas 9

S63-07608 (1963) --- Preparation for launch of Mercury-Atlas 9 (MA-9). Photo credit: NASA

View of Astronaut John Glenn in his Mercury pressure suit

View of Astronaut John Glenn in his Mercury pressure suit

S64-36910 (February 1962) --- Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr., wearing a Mercury pressure suit, was the pilot of the Mercury-Atlas 6 (MA-6) mission. Glenn made America's first manned Earth-orbiting spaceflight on F... More

Astronaut Scott Carpenter during centrifuge training

Astronaut Scott Carpenter during centrifuge training

B59-00570 (August 1959) --- Astronaut Scott Carpenter trains at the centrifuge procedures trainer at Wright Field, Johnsville, Pennsylvania, for project Mercury. Photo credit: NASA

Mercury Project chimpanzee Ham, NASA Mercury project

Mercury Project chimpanzee Ham, NASA Mercury project

A three-year-old chimpanzee, named Ham, in the biopack couch for the MR-2 suborbital test flight. On January 31, 1961, a Mercury-Redstone launch from Cape Canaveral carried the chimpanzee "Ham" over 640 kilomet... More

Mercury Project Madison County Alabama

Mercury Project Madison County Alabama

Dr. von Braun addresses a crowd celebrating in front of the Madison County Alabama Courthouse following the successful launch of Astronaut Alan Shepard (America's first astronaut in space) into space on a Mercu... More

Launch of Friendship 7, NASA Mercury project

Launch of Friendship 7, NASA Mercury project

Full Description: (February 20, 1962) Launch of Friendship 7, the first American manned orbital space flight. Astronaut John Glenn aboard, the Mercury-Atlas rocket is launched from Pad 14...Image # : 62PC-0011

Friendship 7, NASA Mercury project

Friendship 7, NASA Mercury project

(February 20, 1962) On February 20, 1962 at 9:47 am EST, John Glenn launched from Cape Canaveral's Launch Complex 14 to become the first American to orbit the Earth. In this image, Glenn enters his Friendship 7... More

Mercury Suit up, NASA Mercury project

Mercury Suit up, NASA Mercury project

S65-24623 (May 1962) --- Astronaut M. Scott Carpenter, prime pilot for the Mercury-Atlas 7 (MA-7) flight, is seen in Hanger S crew quarters during a suiting exercise. Carpenter is seated in a mock-up of his pil... More

LAUNCH ESCAPE TOWER - ARTIST CONCEPT - MERCURY SPACECRAFT

LAUNCH ESCAPE TOWER - ARTIST CONCEPT - MERCURY SPACECRAFT

S62-04976 (31 Aug. 1962) --- Artist concept of the Mercury capsule with its launch escape system. Photo credit: NASA

Mercury Project - L. Gordon Cooper, Jr

Mercury Project - L. Gordon Cooper, Jr

Astronaut L. Gordon Cooper, Jr., one of the original seven astronauts for Mercury Project selected by NASA on April 27, 1959. The MA-9 mission, boosted by the Mercury-Atlas launch vehicle, was the last flight o... More

Astronaut John Glenn - Blood Draw - Training - Cape

Astronaut John Glenn - Blood Draw - Training - Cape

S61-02579 (1961) --- Astronaut nurse Delores B. O'Hara, R.N., in the Aeromedical Laboratory at Cape Canaveral, Florida, takes a blood sample from Mercury astronaut John H. Glenn Jr. Photo credit: NASA

Astronaut John Glenn tests balance mechanism performance

Astronaut John Glenn tests balance mechanism performance

S64-14849 (1962) --- Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr.'s balance mechanism (semi-circular-canals) is tested by running cool water into his ear and measuring effect on eye motions (nystagmus). Photo credit: NASA

Astronaut Scott Carpenter undergoes simulated mission in procedures trainer

Astronaut Scott Carpenter undergoes simulated mission in procedures tr...

S62-01033 (1961) --- Project Mercury astronaut M. Scott Carpenter, prime pilot for the United States second manned orbital flight, undergoes a simulated mission in the procedures trainer at Langley Air Force Ba... More

MERCURY SPACECRAFT - LINE DRAWING, NASA Mercury project

MERCURY SPACECRAFT - LINE DRAWING, NASA Mercury project

S63-21624 (November 1963) --- Main instrument panel for the Mercury spacecraft. Photo credit: NASA

Astronaut Grissom dons spacesuit for Mercury-Redstone 4 mission

Astronaut Grissom dons spacesuit for Mercury-Redstone 4 mission

S88-55875 (19 July 1961) --- Donning a spacesuit for the Mercury-Redstone 4 (MR-4) mission, astronaut Virgil I. (Gus) Grissom chats with spaceflight equipment specialist Joe W. Schmidt in the personal equipment... More

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- CCMTA, NASA:MERCURY, Pad 14  Mercury Atlas-6 with Capsule #13.      Photo credit: NASA/USAF KSC-LOD-62-475

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- CCMTA, NASA:MERCURY, Pad 14 Mercury Atlas-6 w...

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- CCMTA, NASA:MERCURY, Pad 14 Mercury Atlas-6 with Capsule #13. Photo credit: NASA/USAF

CAPE CANAVERAL Fla. -- Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr. gives a double thumbs-up as he and President John F. Kennedy arrive at the Cape Canaveral Missile Test Annex in Florida. Glenn's Mercury Atlas 6 mission lifted off from Launch Complex 14, in the background, on Feb. 20, 1962. Photo Credit: NASA KSC-62C-0363

CAPE CANAVERAL Fla. -- Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr. gives a double thum...

CAPE CANAVERAL Fla. -- Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr. gives a double thumbs-up as he and President John F. Kennedy arrive at the Cape Canaveral Missile Test Annex in Florida. Glenn's Mercury Atlas 6 mission lifted... More

Horizon photo of Western horizon over South America - sixth orbit pass

Horizon photo of Western horizon over South America - sixth orbit pass...

S62-06604 (3 Oct. 1962) --- Western horizon over South America taken during the sixth orbit pass of the Mercury-Atlas 8 (MA-8) mission by astronaut Walter M. Schirra Jr. with a hand-held camera. Photo credit: NASA

Astronaut John Hershel Glenn in his Mercury spacesuit. (NASA MA6-48)

Astronaut John Hershel Glenn in his Mercury spacesuit. (NASA MA6-48)

S87-41328 (February 1962) --- Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr., Mercury-Atlas 6 (MA-6) pilot. EDITOR'S NOTE: Astronaut Glenn was the first American to orbit Earth. Photo credit: NASA

Official portrait of Astronaut Virgil I. Grissom in pressure suit

Official portrait of Astronaut Virgil I. Grissom in pressure suit

S88-55873 (1961) --- Astronaut Virgil I. (Gus) Grissom, pilot of the Mercury-Redstone 4 (MR-4) spaceflight. (NOTE: Astronaut "Gus" Grissom, one of the original seven astronauts, died Jan. 27, 1967, at NASA?s... More

Mercury Project, NASA Mercury project

Mercury Project, NASA Mercury project

Astronaut Virgil I. "Gus" Grissom, one of the original seven astronauts for Mercury Project selected by NASA on April 27, 1959. The MR-4 mission, boosted by the Mercury-Redstone vehicle, made the second marned ... More

Mercury Capsule Retrorocket Test in the Altitude Wind Tunnel

Mercury Capsule Retrorocket Test in the Altitude Wind Tunnel

A mechanic at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Lewis Research Center prepares the inverted base of a Mercury capsule for a test of its posigrade retrorockets inside the Altitude Wind Tun... More

View of Astronaut John Glenn insertion into the Mercury Spacecraft

View of Astronaut John Glenn insertion into the Mercury Spacecraft

S62-00957 (20 Feb. 1962) --- Project Mercury astronaut John H. Glenn Jr., enters the Friendship 7 spacecraft during the last part of the countdown on Feb. 20, 1962. At 9:47 a.m. (EST), the Atlas launch vehicle ... More

A three-year-old chimpanzee, named Ham - Mercury Project

A three-year-old chimpanzee, named Ham - Mercury Project

A three-year-old chimpanzee, named Ham, in the biopack couch for the MR-2 suborbital test flight. On January 31, 1961, a Mercury-Redstone launch from Cape Canaveral carried the chimpanzee "Ham" over 640 kilomet... More

Mercury Project - The launch of the Mercury Atlas (MA-2)

Mercury Project - The launch of the Mercury Atlas (MA-2)

The launch of the Mercury Atlas (MA-2), an unmarned suborbital Mercury capsule test on February 24, 1961.

Astronaut Walter M. Schirra, Jr.

Astronaut Walter M. Schirra, Jr.

S62-05526 (1962) --- Astronaut Walter M. Schirra Jr. Photo credit: NASA

John Glenn, Mercury -- February 1962

John Glenn, Mercury -- February 1962

Description: Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr., NASA flight surgeon William Douglas and equipment specialist Joseph W. Schmidt leave crew quarters prior to the Mercury-Atlas 6 mission. Glenn is in his pressure suit a... More

Photograph of Project Mercury Flight Simulation with Astronaut M. Scott Carpenter

Photograph of Project Mercury Flight Simulation with Astronaut M. Scot...

Original caption: Flight Simulation - Paul Backer (left) and Dr. Robert Voas, Astronaut Training Officer, discuss MA-7 flight plan with Project Mercury Astronaut M. Scott Carpenter (center). Carpenter is about... More

Mercury "Friendship 7" Spacecraft, NASA Mercury project

Mercury "Friendship 7" Spacecraft, NASA Mercury project

(February 20, 1962) Astronaut John Glenn, first American to orbit the Earth, enters the Mercury "Friendship 7" Spacecraft during prelaunch preparations. ..Image # : S62-00371

Astronaut John Glenn poses for press photographers at Cape Canaveral

Astronaut John Glenn poses for press photographers at Cape Canaveral

S64-14869 (February 1962) --- Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr., wearing a Mercury pressure suit, was the pilot of the Mercury-Atlas 6 (MA-6) mission. Glenn made America's first manned Earth-orbital spaceflight on Fe... More

Project Mercury, 1959-1963, NASA Mercury project

Project Mercury, 1959-1963, NASA Mercury project

Image Credit: NASA..Description Less than a year after its birth, the National Aeronautics and Space Agency announced its first astronaut class, the Mercury Seven, on April 9, 1959. Project Mercury proved that ... More

Mercury Project - Liftoff of MR-4 (Mercury-Redstone)

Mercury Project - Liftoff of MR-4 (Mercury-Redstone)

Liftoff of MR-4 (Mercury-Redstone), Liberty Bell 7, on July 21, 1961. MR-4 mission was the second marned suborbital flight and carried Astronaut Virgil Grissom aboard the Liberty Bell 7 spacecraft in space for ... More

John Glenn enters his Friendship 7 capsule

John Glenn enters his Friendship 7 capsule

(February 20, 1962) Project Mercury astronaut John H. Glenn, Jr. enters his Mercury Friendship 7 capsule before launch on February 20, 1962. At 9:47 a.m. (EST), his Atlas launch vehicle lifted him into orbit fo... More

John Glenn With T.J. O'Malley and Paul Donnelly in Front of Friendship 7

John Glenn With T.J. O'Malley and Paul Donnelly in Front of Friendship...

(January 24, 1962) Grouped together with astronaut John H. Glenn, Jr., beside "Friendship 7" spacecraft are left to right: T.J. O'Malley, chief test conductor for General Dynamics; Glenn; and Paul Donnelly. ..I... More

Astronaut Gordon Cooper - Mercury Project

Astronaut Gordon Cooper - Mercury Project

Astronaut Gordon Cooper leaves the Faith 7 (MA-9) spacecraft after a successful recovery operation. The MA-9 mission, the last flight of the Mercury Project, was launched on May 15, 1963, orbited the Earth 22 t... More

Mercury Project, NASA Mercury project

Mercury Project, NASA Mercury project

The original seven astronauts for the Mercury Project pose in front of an Air Force Jet. From left to right: Scott Carpenter, L. Gordon Cooper, John H. Glenn, Virgil I. Gus Grissom, Walter M. Wally Schirra, Ala... More

Project Mercury: M-1 model in the 11ft w.t. with engineer ARC-1959-A-24777

Project Mercury: M-1 model in the 11ft w.t. with engineer ARC-1959-A-2...

Project Mercury: M-1 model in the 11ft w.t. with engineer

Mercury Project - The Little Joe launch vehicle for the LJ1 mission

Mercury Project - The Little Joe launch vehicle for the LJ1 mission

The Little Joe launch vehicle for the LJ1 mission on the launch pad at the wallops Flight Facility, Wallops Island, Virginia, on January 21, 1960. This mission achieved the suborbital Mercury cupsule test, test... More

Little Joe 5B High-Q-Abort Test

Little Joe 5B High-Q-Abort Test

(April 28, 1961) "Little Joe" 5B launched a Mercury spacecraft in a high-Q-abort test. The ring-sail parachute lands the spacecraft off the shore of Wallops Island, Virginia. The Little Joe rocket booster was d... More

Mercury Redstone II mission - Earth Observations

Mercury Redstone II mission - Earth Observations

The original caption reads: Earth observations taken during the Mercury Redstone 2 (MR-2) flight. The flight number (MR-2) and a mag or frame number are visible at the top right and center of the photo. A clock... More

Mercury Redstone III flight - Earth Observations

Mercury Redstone III flight - Earth Observations

The original caption reads: Earth Observations taken during the Mercury Redstone 3 (MR-3) flight. The flight number (MR-3) and a mag or frame number are visible at the top right and center of the photo. A clock... More

Astronaut Walter Schirra during water egress training

Astronaut Walter Schirra during water egress training

S62-01379 (1962) --- Astronaut Walter M. Schirra Jr., wearing his pressure suit, is seated in a life raft during a portion of his water egress training. Photo credit: NASA

Astronaut Scott Carpenter - Medal Presentation - Dr. James Webb Post Mercury-Atlas (MA-7)

Astronaut Scott Carpenter - Medal Presentation - Dr. James Webb Post M...

S62-04114 (1962) --- Astronaut M. Scott Carpenter, pilot of the Mercury-Atlas 7 (MA-7) mission, receives the NASA Distinguished Service Medal from NASA Adminstrator James E. Webb during ceremonies at Cape Canav... More

Astronaut John Glenn and Wife - Visit - General McArthur

Astronaut John Glenn and Wife - Visit - General McArthur

S62-02270 (1962) --- Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr. and wife visit with General Douglas McArthur in the Waldorf Astoria hotel. Photo credit: NASA

INSERTION - ASTRONAUT CARPENTER - MERCURY-ATLAS (MA)-7 - CAPE

INSERTION - ASTRONAUT CARPENTER - MERCURY-ATLAS (MA)-7 - CAPE

S62-02846 (24 May 1962) --- Project Mercury astronaut M. Scott Carpenter, prime pilot for the Mercury-Atlas 7 (MA-7) mission, is assisted into the MA-7 spacecraft by techicians at Launch Pad 14, Cape Canaveral,... More

Walter Schirra and Walter Williams at Mercury 7 memorial

Walter Schirra and Walter Williams at Mercury 7 memorial

S64-40113 (1964) --- Astronaut Walter Schirra Jr. (right) and Walter Williams, Deputy Director of Mission Requirements, pictured at the Mercury 7 memorial dedication. Photo credit: NASA

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -  At the KSC Visitor Complex, former astronaut John H. Glenn (at podium) presents former astronaut Robert "Hoot" Gibson (standing right) at his induction ceremony into the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame. Also standing is former astronaut James A. Lovell.  Seated on the dais, from left, are actor and Master of Ceremonies Lance Henriksen (left), and former astronauts Sally K. Ride and Daniel Brandenstein (right), both inducted into the Hall of Fame today. Also being inducted is Space Shuttle astronaut Story Musgrave. Conceived by six of the Mercury Program astronauts, the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame opened in 1990 to provide a place where space travelers could be remembered for their participation and accomplishments in the U.S. space program. The four new inductees join 48 previously honored astronauts from the ranks of the Gemini, Apollo, Skylab, Apollo-Soyuz, and Space Shuttle programs.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - At the KSC Visitor Complex, former astro...

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - At the KSC Visitor Complex, former astronaut John H. Glenn (at podium) presents former astronaut Robert "Hoot" Gibson (standing right) at his induction ceremony into the U.S. Astro... More

Cape Canaveral, Fla. -- Retired Gemini and Apollo astronaut Dick Gordon waves to spectators from a vintage Chevrolet Corvette during a commemorative parade in Cocoa Beach, Fla.      A group of current and retired NASA astronauts gathered in Cocoa Beach to commemorate NASA’s 50 years of accomplishments and to honor astronaut Alan Shepard’s Mercury/Freedom 7 suborbital flight May 5, 1961.The event was marked by a parade, with the astronauts riding in a fleet of Chevrolet Corvettes that corresponded with the time period of their space missions. Members of the Cape Kennedy Corvette Club, a group established in 1967, escorted almost two dozen astronauts or their family representatives in club members' cars. The Corvette parade started at the glass bank building, at 9:34 a.m. EDT, the same time Shepard launched into space. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett KSC-2011-3377

Cape Canaveral, Fla. -- Retired Gemini and Apollo astronaut Dick Gordo...

Cape Canaveral, Fla. -- Retired Gemini and Apollo astronaut Dick Gordon waves to spectators from a vintage Chevrolet Corvette during a commemorative parade in Cocoa Beach, Fla. A group of current and retir... More

SCHIRRA, WALTER, JR., ASTRONAUT - TRAINING - CENTRIFUGE - PA

SCHIRRA, WALTER, JR., ASTRONAUT - TRAINING - CENTRIFUGE - PA

G60-02461 (1960) --- Astronaut Walter M. Schirra Jr. prepares to enter gondola of centrifuge which is used to test gravitational stress on astronauts training for spaceflight. Schirra became the pilot of the Me... More

Mercury 1A Mission - Earth Observations

Mercury 1A Mission - Earth Observations

The original caption reads: Earth Observations taken during the Mercury Redstone 1A flight. A clock face is visible in the top left of the photo. Film type was 70mm Dupont Cronar. Categories: Earth Observatio... More

Mercury Redstone 3 imagery, NASA Mercury project

Mercury Redstone 3 imagery, NASA Mercury project

JSC2007-E-046476 (1961) --- Astronaut Alan B. Shepard Jr., one of three NASA astronauts chosen for the Project Mercury first manned suborbital flight, prepares for testing in a capsule of the U.S. Navy's centri... More

Astronaut Alan Shepard removing space suit on U.S. Champlain after recovery

Astronaut Alan Shepard removing space suit on U.S. Champlain after rec...

S88-31382 (5 May 1961) --- Astronaut Alan B. Shepard receives assistance in removing his spacesuit while on the U.S. Champlain after the recovery of his Mercury capsule. Photo credit: NASA or National Aeronauti... More

Mercury Project recovery, NASA Mercury project

Mercury Project recovery, NASA Mercury project

This photo depicts the recovery operations of the MR-3 mission. Astronaut Alan Shepard was picked up by a U.S. Marine helicopter after the completion of the first marned suborbital flight by MR-3 (Mercury-Redst... More

Mercury Redstone III flight - Earth Observations

Mercury Redstone III flight - Earth Observations

The original caption reads: Earth Observations taken during the Mercury Redstone 3 (MR-3) flight. The flight number (MR-3) and a mag or frame number are visible at the top right and center of the photo. A clock... More

Earth Observation - Mercury-Redstone (MR)-4 Flight

Earth Observation - Mercury-Redstone (MR)-4 Flight

S62-01287 (21 July 1961) --- Earth observation take during the Mercury-Redstone 4 (MR-4) spaceflight. Photo credit: NASA

Attempted Recovery of Mercury spacecraft at end of MR-4 mission

Attempted Recovery of Mercury spacecraft at end of MR-4 mission

S61-02824 (21 July 1961) --- A U.S. Marine Corps helicopter attempts an unsuccessful recovery of the Mercury-Redstone 4 "Liberty Bell 7" spacecraft. The spacecraft hatch opened prematurely, and astronaut Virgil... More

Mercury Project, NASA Mercury project

Mercury Project, NASA Mercury project

A U.S. Marine helicopter attempts to retrieve the sinking capsule, Liberty Bell 7, of the MR-4 mission. The attempt failed and the capsule sank. The MR-4 mission marned by Astronaut Virgil Grissom was the secon... More

Mercury Project - Astronaut Virgil Gus Grissom

Mercury Project - Astronaut Virgil Gus Grissom

Astronaut Virgil Gus Grissom awaits America's second marned space mission, Mercury-Redstone 4 (MR-4) on July 21, 1961. During the 15-minute suborbital flight, the Liberty Bell 7 Mercury spacecraft reached an al... More

Attempted Recovery - Mercury Spacecraft - End - Mercury-Redstone (MR)-4 Mission

Attempted Recovery - Mercury Spacecraft - End - Mercury-Redstone (MR)-...

S61-02820 (21 July 1961) --- Attempted recovery of Mercury spacecraft at end of the Mercury-Redstone 4 (MR-4) mission. View shows the Marine helicopter pulled almost to the waters surface by the weight of the c... More

Mercury Atlas IV mission - Earth Observations

Mercury Atlas IV mission - Earth Observations

The original caption reads: Earth Observations taken by during the Mercury Atlas 4 (MA-4) mission. The flight number (MA-4) and a mag or frame number are visible at the top right and center of the photo. A clo... More

Closeup View - Astronaut John Glenn - Insertion - Mercury Capsule - Cape

Closeup View - Astronaut John Glenn - Insertion - Mercury Capsule - Ca...

S62-01004 (1962) --- Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr., pilot of the Mercury Atlas 6 (MA-6) mission, participates in Mercury egress training during MA-6 preflight preparations. Glenn made the free world's first mann... More

CAPE CANAVERAL Fla. -- Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr. gives a double thumbs-up as he and President John F. Kennedy arrive at the Cape Canaveral Missile Test Annex in Florida. Glenn's Mercury Atlas 6 mission lifted off from Launch Complex 14, in the background, on Feb. 20, 1962. Photo credit: NASA KSC-PL62-76873

CAPE CANAVERAL Fla. -- Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr. gives a double thum...

CAPE CANAVERAL Fla. -- Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr. gives a double thumbs-up as he and President John F. Kennedy arrive at the Cape Canaveral Missile Test Annex in Florida. Glenn's Mercury Atlas 6 mission lifted... More

Cumulus cloud formation over West Atlantic Ocean north of South America

Cumulus cloud formation over West Atlantic Ocean north of South Americ...

S62-06613 (3 Oct. 1962) --- Cumulus cloud formation over West Atlantic Ocean north of South American during the fourth orbit pass of the Mercury-Atlas 8 (MA-8) mission by astronaut Walter M. Schirra Jr. with a ... More

Landing of Mercury-Atlas 8 spacecraft with parachute extended

Landing of Mercury-Atlas 8 spacecraft with parachute extended

S63-00693 (3 Oct. 1962) --- Landing with parachute extended of astronaut Walter M. Schirra's Mercury-Atlas 8 (MA-8) capsule, called the Sigma 7, after a world orbital flight. Photo is labeled "Splashdown". Phot... More

MERCURY-ATLAS (MA)-9 - SHEPARD, ALAN B., JR. ASTRONAUT - MERCURY CONTROL CENTER (MCC) - CAPE

MERCURY-ATLAS (MA)-9 - SHEPARD, ALAN B., JR. ASTRONAUT - MERCURY CONTR...

S63-07857 (15-16 May 1963) --- Astronaut Alan Shepard (left) and Walter C. Williams monitor progress of the Mercury Atlas 9 (MA-9) mission from Mercury Control Center, Cape Canaveral, Florida. Photo credit: NASA

Mercury Project, America Space Program

Mercury Project, America Space Program

Dr. Wernher von Braun, Director of the Army Ballistic Missile Agency's (ABMA) Development Operations Division, poses with the original Mercury astronauts in ABMA's Fabrication Laboratory during a 1959 visit. In... More

John Glenn in the Mercury Procedures Trainer

John Glenn in the Mercury Procedures Trainer

(1960) John H. Glenn, one of the Mercury Seven Astronauts, runs through a training exercise in the Mercury Procedures Trainer at the Space Task Group, Langley Field, Virginia. This Link-type spacecraft simulato... More

ASTRONAUT GRISSOM, VIRGIL I. - MERCURY SPACECRAFT - EGRESS TRAINING

ASTRONAUT GRISSOM, VIRGIL I. - MERCURY SPACECRAFT - EGRESS TRAINING

S61-03885 (26 April 1961) --- Astronaut Virgil I. (Gus) Grissom, wearing the new Mercury spacesuit, stands outside of a mock-up of the Mercury capsule on the deck of a ship taking him to emergency water egress ... More

S62-00992 (1961) --- Mercury astronaut John Glenn looks into a Celestial Training Device (globe) during training in the Aeromedical Laboratory at Cape Canaveral, Florida. s62_00992

S62-00992 (1961) --- Mercury astronaut John Glenn looks into a Celesti...

S62-00992 (1961) --- Mercury astronaut John Glenn looks into a Celestial Training Device (globe) during training in the Aeromedical Laboratory at Cape Canaveral, Florida.

Mercury Redstone II mission - Earth Observations

Mercury Redstone II mission - Earth Observations

The original caption reads: Earth observations taken during the Mercury Redstone 2 (MR-2) flight. The flight number (MR-2) and a mag or frame number are visible at the top right and center of the photo. A clock... More

Mercury Redstone III flight - Earth Observations

Mercury Redstone III flight - Earth Observations

The original caption reads: Earth Observations taken during the Mercury Redstone 3 (MR-3) flight. The flight number (MR-3) and a mag or frame number are visible at the top right and center of the photo. A clock... More

Astronaut Alan Shepard receives MASA Distinguished Service award

Astronaut Alan Shepard receives MASA Distinguished Service award

S88-31388 (8 May 1961) --- Astronaut Alan B. Shepard Jr. (center), along with wife Louise, waves to a crowd outside the U.S. Capitol building. Shepard, Mercury-Redstone 3 astronaut, had earlier briefed Congress... More

Astronaut Scott Carpenter - Procedures Trainer - Johnsonville, PA

Astronaut Scott Carpenter - Procedures Trainer - Johnsonville, PA

S61-03506 (1961) --- Project Mercury astronaut M. Scott Carpenter, prime pilot for the United States second manned orbital flight, undergoes a simulated mission in the procedures trainer at Langley Air Force Ba... More

Astronaut John Glenn during training exercise in Mercury Procedures Trainer

Astronaut John Glenn during training exercise in Mercury Procedures Tr...

S62-01021 (1962) --- Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr. during training procedures in a trainer at the McDonnell Douglas training facility in St. Louis, Missouri. Photo credit: NASA

ASTRONAUT GLENN, JOHN - MERCURY SPACE SUIT

ASTRONAUT GLENN, JOHN - MERCURY SPACE SUIT

S62-00965 (20 Feb. 1962) --- Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr., finishes suiting up, and prepares for the launch of his Mercury-Atlas 6 (MA-6) spacecraft. The MA-6 ?Friendship 7? mission marks America's first manned ... More

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