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Mercury -- May 1963
Mercury astronaut L. Gordon
7/16/08
Description |
Mercury astronaut L. Gordon Cooper Jr. is wearing a spacesuit during Mercury-Atlas 9 prelaunch activities. |
Date |
7/16/08 |
|
Mercury -- April 1959
NASA introduced the Project
8/25/08
Description |
NASA introduced the Project Mercury astronauts to the world on April 9, 1959, only six months after the agency was established. Known as the Mercury Seven or Original Seven, they are (front row, left to right) Walter M. "Wally" Schirra Jr., Donald K. "Deke" Slayton, John H. Glenn Jr., M. Scott Carpenter, (back row) Alan B. Shepard Jr., Virgil I. "Gus" Grissom and L. Gordon Cooper, Jr. |
Date |
8/25/08 |
|
Mercury -- May 1961
Mercury-Redstone 3 pilot Ala
7/16/08
Description |
Mercury-Redstone 3 pilot Alan B. Shepard Jr. is wearing the Mercury pressure suit and holding his helmet. |
Date |
7/16/08 |
|
Mercury -- February 1962
Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr.,
7/16/08
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 and is carrying the portable ventilation unit. |
Date |
7/16/08 |
|
Mercury -- September 1962
Astronaut Walter M. "Wally"
7/16/08
Description |
Astronaut Walter M. "Wally" Schirra Jr., pilot of the Mercury-Atlas 8 Earth-orbital spaceflight, goes through a suiting-up exercise at Cape Canaveral several weeks prior to his scheduled Oct. 3, 1962 flight. |
Date |
7/16/08 |
|
Mercury -- 1961
The Mercury suit included gl
7/16/08
Description |
The Mercury suit included gloves, boots and a helmet. |
Date |
7/16/08 |
|
Mercury -- July 1961
Donning a spacesuit for the
9/24/08
Description |
Donning a spacesuit for the Mercury-Redstone 4 mission, astronaut Virgil I. "Gus" Grissom chats with spaceflight equipment specialist Joseph W. Schmidt in the personal equipment room of Hangar S at Cape Canaveral, Fla. |
Date |
9/24/08 |
|
Mercury -- 1962
Astronaut M. Scott Carpenter
7/16/08
Description |
Astronaut M. Scott Carpenter is wearing a Mercury pressure suit during astronaut training at Cape Canaveral, Fla. |
Date |
7/16/08 |
|
The Road to Apollo
A full-scale model of the Me
3/16/09
Description |
A full-scale model of the Mercury capsule was tested in the Langley 30- by 60-Foot Full-Scale Wind Tunnel. Managed at Langley Research Center, the objectives of the Mercury program were quite specific -- to orbit a crewed spacecraft around the Earth, to investigate the ability of humans to function in space and to recover both human and spacecraft safely. Project Mercury accomplished the first orbital flight made by an American, astronaut John Glenn. Credit: NASA |
Date |
3/16/09 |
|
Mercury 7 50th Anniversary
The Mercury 7 astronauts exa
4/10/09
Description |
The Mercury 7 astronauts examining their "couches." Each astronaut had his own couch specifically molded to fit his body to help withstand the G-loads of the launch. Plaster casts of the astronauts were created in order to properly mold the couches. Left to right: Alan Sheppard, John Glenn, Walter Schirra, Scott Carpenter, Gordon Cooper, Deke Slayton, Gus Grissom and Bob Gilruth. Gilruth was Director of the Space Task Group, which planned and managed the Mercury Project. |
Date |
4/10/09 |
|
Astronaut John Glenn During
Title |
Astronaut John Glenn During Mercury-Atlas 6 Pre-launch Activities |
Full Description |
Astronaut John Glenn gives ready sign during Mercury-Atlas 6 pre- launch training activities. |
Date |
01/23/1962 |
NASA Center |
Kennedy Space Center |
|
Planet Mercury
Title |
Planet Mercury |
Full Description |
Mariner 10's first image of Mercury acquired on March 24, 1974. During its flight, Mariner 10's trajectory brought it behind the lighted hemisphere of Mercury, where this image was taken, in order to acquire important measurements with other instruments. This picture was acquired from a distance of 3,340,000 miles (5,380,000 km) from the surface of Mercury. The diameter of Mercury (3,031 miles, 4,878 km) is about 1/3 that of Earth. Images of Mercury were acquired in two steps, an inbound leg (images acquired before passing into Mercury's shadow) and an outbound leg (after exiting from Mercury's shadow). More than 2300 useful images of Mercury were taken, both moderate resolution (3-20 km/pixel) color and high resolution (better than 1 km/pixel) black and white coverage. |
Date |
03/24/1974 |
NASA Center |
Jet Propulsion Laboratory |
|
On Mercury
Why are many large craters o
6/2/09
Description |
Why are many large craters on Mercury relatively smooth inside? Images from the MESSENGER spacecraft that flew by Mercury in October 2008 show previously... |
Date |
6/2/09 |
|
Mercury-Atlas 9
Technicians were performing
4/10/09
Description |
Technicians were performing pre-launch testing of the Mercury-Atlas 9 (MA9) on Launch Pad 14 at Cape Canaveral when this photo was taken on May 14, 1963.... |
Date |
4/10/09 |
|
The Road to Apollo
Even before the Space Task G
3/30/09
Description |
Even before the Space Task Group was formally organized, Langley had begun to develop the concept of the "Little Joe" test vehicle that became the workhorse of the nation's initial humans-in-space program -- Mercury. Little Joe, a solid fuel rocket, carried instrumented payloads to various altitudes and allowed engineers to check the operation of the Mercury capsule escape rocket and recovery systems. Here Langley technicians construct the Little Joe capsules in-house in Langley's shops. Credit: NASA |
Date |
3/30/09 |
|
John Glenn in the Mercury Pr
Title |
John Glenn in the Mercury Procedures Trainer |
Full Description |
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 simulator allowed the astronaut the practice of both normal and emergency modes of systems operations. |
Date |
1960 |
NASA Center |
Langley Research Center |
|
Planet Mercury
title |
Planet Mercury |
date |
03.24.1974 |
description |
Mariner 10's first image of Mercury acquired on March 24, 1974. During its flight, Mariner 10's trajectory brought it behind the lighted hemisphere of Mercury, where this image was taken, in order to acquire important measurements with other instruments. This picture was acquired from a distance of 3,340,000 miles (5,380,000 km) from the surface of Mercury. The diameter of Mercury (3,031 miles, 4,878 km) is about 1/3 that of Earth. Images of Mercury were acquired in two steps, an inbound leg (images acquired before passing into Mercury's shadow) and an outbound leg (after exiting from Mercury's shadow). More than 2300 useful images of Mercury were taken, both moderate resolution (3-20 km/pixel) color and high resolution (better than 1 km/pixel) black and white coverage. *Image Credit*: NASA |
|
Mercury Transit from TRACE (
Title |
Mercury Transit from TRACE (White Light) |
Abstract |
This is a view of the planet Mercury (a black dot) as seen by TRACE through its white light optical telescope. Because the TRACE field-of-view is much smaller than the solar disk, the spacecraft is repointed three times during the transit (creating the position jumps of the movie). This movie was generated from telemetry which has undergone a minimum of processing (to deliver quickly for the media) so data dropouts and other quick-processing artifacts may be visible. Special thanks to Dawn Myers of the TRACE project for this effort. |
Completed |
2006-11-14 |
|
Mercury-Atlas Test Launch
Title |
Mercury-Atlas Test Launch |
Full Description |
A NASA Project Mercury spacecraft was test launched at 11:15 AM EST on April 25, 1961 from Cape Canaveral, Florida, in a test designed to qualify the Mercury Spacecraft and all systems, which must function during orbit and reentry from orbit. The Mercury-Atlas vehicle was destroyed by Range Safety Officer about 40 seconds after liftoff. The spacecraft was recovered and appeared to be in good condition. Atlas was designed to launch payloads into low Earth orbit, geosynchronous transfer orbit or geosynchronous orbit. NASA first launched Atlas as a space launch vehicle in 1958. Project SCORE, the first communications satellite that transmitted President Eisenhower's pre-recorded Christmas speech around the world, was launched on an Atlas. For all three robotic lunar exploration programs, Atlas was used. Atlas/ Centaur vehicles launched both Mariner and Pioneer planetary probes. The current operational Atlas II family has a 100% mission success rating. For more information about Atlas, please see Chapter 2 in Roger Launius and Dennis Jenkins' book To Reach the High Frontier published by The University Press of Kentucky in 2002. |
Date |
04/25/1961 |
NASA Center |
Kennedy Space Center |
|
Mercury Redstone 3 Prelaunch
Title |
Mercury Redstone 3 Prelaunch Activities |
Full Description |
Mercury-Redstone 3 (MR-3) Prelaunch Activities on the Mercury 5 launch pad. |
Date |
4/21/1961 |
NASA Center |
Kennedy Space Center |
|
Mercury-Atlas Rocket on the
Title |
Mercury-Atlas Rocket on the Launch Pad |
Full Description |
Pre-launch test of the Mercury-Atlas 9 (MA9) on Launch Pad 14 at Cape Canaveral, Florida. |
Date |
5/14/1963 |
NASA Center |
Kennedy Space Center |
|
Project Mercury - Capsule #2
Title |
Project Mercury - Capsule #2 |
Full Description |
Project Mercury - Capsule #2. Capsule complete in Lewis Hangar near Cleveland, Ohio. Lewis is now known as the Glenn Research Center. |
Date |
08/03/1959 |
NASA Center |
Glenn Research Center |
|
On Mercury
Why are many large craters o
6/2/09
Description |
Why are many large craters on Mercury relatively smooth inside? Images from the MESSENGER spacecraft that flew by Mercury in October 2008 show previously... |
Date |
6/2/09 |
|
Mariner 10
On Nov. 3, 1973, the Mariner
10/2/09
Description |
On Nov. 3, 1973, the Mariner Venus/Mercury 1973 spacecraft, also known as Mariner 10, was launched from NASA's Kennedy Space Center, becoming the first spacecraft designed to use gravity assist. Three months after launch it flew by Venus, changed speed and trajectory, then crossed Mercury's orbit in March 1974. This photo identifies the spacecraft's science instruments, which were used to study the atmospheric, surface and physical characteristics of Venus and Mercury. This was the sixth in the series of Mariner spacecraft that explored the inner planets beginning in 1962. Image Credit: NASA/JPL |
Date |
10/2/09 |
|
Mercury-Atlas 9
Technicians were performing
4/10/09
Description |
Technicians were performing pre-launch testing of the Mercury-Atlas 9 (MA9) on Launch Pad 14 at Cape Canaveral when this photo was taken on May 14, 1963. A day later on May 15, Gordon Cooper successfully piloted this his 'Faith 7' spacecraft for more than 34 hours and 22 orbits. Cooper's flight stretched the capabilities of the Mercury capsule to the limits. His 34-hour flight lasted more than three times the longest U.S. human space flight until that time, and far exceeded the initial design capability of the capsule. Image Credit: NASA |
Date |
4/10/09 |
|
Mercury Astronaut Gordon Coo
Title |
Mercury Astronaut Gordon Cooper Jr. |
Full Description |
Mercury Astronaut L. Gordon Cooper Jr., in his pressure suit with helmet during Mercury-Atlas 9 prelaunch activities. |
Date |
02/25/1963 |
NASA Center |
Johnson Space Center |
|
Mercury Astronaut Wally Schi
Title |
Mercury Astronaut Wally Schirra |
Full Description |
Astronaut Walter M. Schirra Jr. in Mercury pressure suit with model of Mercury capsule behind him. |
Date |
10/01/1962 |
NASA Center |
Johnson Space Center |
|
Mercury On Deck
Title |
Mercury On Deck |
Full Description |
The crew of the U.S.S. Kearsarge spell out the words "Mercury 9" on the ship's flight deck while on the way to the recovery area where astronaut Gordon Cooper is expected to splash down in his "Faith 7" Mercury space capsule. |
Date |
05/15/1963 |
NASA Center |
Johnson Space Center |
|
Boilerplate Mercury Capsule
Title |
Boilerplate Mercury Capsule |
Full Description |
Looking like a scene from an H.G. Wells novel, engineers inspect and test a boilerplate Mercury space capsule. Note the array of bulky test equipment on the table and the less than clean-room conditions. Today such testing is conducted under virtually steril conditions in a completely controlled environment. |
Date |
01/01/1960 |
NASA Center |
Headquarters |
|
First Mercury-Atlas Attempte
Title |
First Mercury-Atlas Attempted Launch |
Full Description |
An Atlas vehicle is shown as it is raised into its launch gantry. This Atlas attempted to launch a Mercury spacecraft (without any astronauts aboard) into orbital flight. The launch vehicle developed 360,000 pounds of thrust and burned RP-1, a kerosene-like fuel, and liquid oxygen. It was about 60 feet in length and 10 feet in diameter at the tank section. This was the first attempt by NASA to put a Mercury spacecraft into Earth orbit. Unfortunately, this Atlas exploded at launch. Atlas was designed to launch payloads into low Earth orbit, geosynchronous transfer orbit or geosynchronous orbit. NASA first launched Atlas as a space launch vehicle in 1958. Project SCORE, the first communications satellite that transmitted President Eisenhower's pre-recorded Christmas speech around the world, was launched on an Atlas. For all three robotic lunar exploration programs, Atlas was used. Atlas/ Centaur vehicles launched Mariner and Pioneer planetary probes. The current operational Atlas II family has a 100% mission success rating. For more information about Atlas, please see Chapter 2 in Roger Launius and Dennis Jenkins' book To Reach the High Frontier published by The University Press of Kentucky in 2002. |
Date |
04/23/1961 |
NASA Center |
Headquarters |
|
The Road to Apollo
The Scout program began in 1
3/2/09
Description |
The Scout program began in 1957 to build an inexpensive sounding rocket to carry small research payloads to high altitudes. Scout would eventually assist the Mercury, Gemini and Apollo programs by testing reentry materials, evaluating methods of protecting spacecraft from micrometeoroids, and examining ways of overcoming radio blackouts as a space capsule reentered the atmosphere. The first Scout launched at Wallops Island July 1, 1960. Credit: NASA |
Date |
3/2/09 |
|
The Road to Apollo
As project Mercury began in
3/16/09
Description |
As project Mercury began in the late 1950s, Langley was thrust full force into the national spotlight with the arrival in Hampton of the original seven astronauts. Under the tutelage of the Space Task Group, (from left front row) Virgil "Gus" Grissom, Scott Carpenter, Donald "Deke" Slayton, Gordon Cooper, (back row) Alan Shepard, Walter Schirra and John Glenn were trained at Langley to operate the space machines that would thrust them beyond the protective environment of Earth's atmosphere. Credit: NASA |
Date |
3/16/09 |
|
The Road to Apollo
After Mercury came Gemini, t
4/6/09
Description |
After Mercury came Gemini, the project that would put to the test the maneuvers that would be required if Apollo was to be successful. Gemini astronauts would have to practice the rendezvous and docking techniques necessary to link two spacecraft. Langley researchers built the Rendezvous Docking Simulator giving astronauts a routine opportunity to pilot dynamically-controlled scale-model vehicles in an environment that closely paralleled that of space. Credit: NASA |
Date |
4/6/09 |
|
Mercury Mission Control Seat
1-Instructor's console 2-Rec
10/30/08
Description |
1-Instructor's console 2-Recovery commander (USN) 3-Operations director 4-Network commander (USAF) 5-Recovery status monitor 6-Range safety observer 7-Flight director 8-Network status monitor 9-Missile telemetry monitor 10-Strip chart recorder 11-Support control coordinator 12-Flight surgeon 13-Spacecraft environment monitor 14-Spacecraft communicator 15-Spacecraft system monitor 16-Retrofire controller 17-Flight dynamics officer 18-TV monitors 19-X-Y recorders 20-Trend charts 21-Operations summary display and alphanumeric indicators 22-Signal distribution panel 23-Teletype printers 24-Data entry console Image Credit: NASA |
Date |
10/30/08 |
|
Brahms Crater
title |
Brahms Crater |
date |
03.30.1974 |
description |
Thirty years ago, NASA's Mariner 10 spacecraft made the first of three passes by Mercury, sending back intriguing images of the planet's battered terrain. NASA will launch the world's second probe to Mercury - named MESSENGER - this summer.This image of the crater was taken on the first flyby. Note the central peak. North is up. (Mariner 10, Atlas of Mercury, Fig. 3-2) This crater (98 km diameter) illustrates the narrow hummocky rim facies, radial ridges, and surrounding extensive field of secondary craters. The well-developed interior terraces and central peaks are typical for mercurian craters in this size range. Note that the smaller craters in the foreground (25-km diameter) also are terraced. This image(FDS 80)was taken during the spacecraft's first encounter with Mercury. The Mariner 10 mission, managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory for NASA's Office of Space Science, explored Venus in February 1974 on the way to three encounters with Mercury-in March and September 1974 and in March 1975. The spacecraft took more than 7,000 photos of Mercury, Venus, the Earth and the Moon. *Image Credi*: NASA |
|
Planet Mercury
PIA00437
Sol (our sun)
Imaging Science Subsystem -
Title |
Planet Mercury |
Original Caption Released with Image |
Mariner 10's first image of Mercury acquired on March 24, 1974. During its flight, Mariner 10's trajectory brought it behind the lighted hemisphere of Mercury, where this image was taken, in order to acquire important measurements with other instruments. This picture was acquired from a distance of 3,340,000 miles (5,380,000 km) from the surface of Mercury. The diameter of Mercury (3,031 miles, 4,878 km) is about 1/3 that of Earth. Images of Mercury were acquired in two steps, an inbound leg (images acquired before passing into Mercury's shadow) and an outbound leg (after exiting from Mercury's shadow). More than 2300 useful images of Mercury were taken, both moderate resolution (3-20 km/pixel) color and high resolution (better than 1 km/pixel) black and white coverage. |
|
Mecury Spacecraft Boilerplat
Title |
Mecury Spacecraft Boilerplate |
Full Description |
Boilerplate Mercury spacecraft being manufactured "in-house" by Langley technicians. The capsules were designed to test spacecraft recovery systems. The escape tower and rocket motors shown on the completed capsule would be removed before shipping and finally assembly for launching at Wallops Island. Design of the Little Joe capsules began at Langley before McDonnell started on the design of the Mercury capsule. |
Date |
07/30/1944 |
NASA Center |
Langley Research Center |
|
Mercury 8 in Hanger
Title |
Mercury 8 in Hanger |
Full Description |
Personnel in Hangar S at Cape Canaveral, Florida prepare Wally Schirra's Mercury 8 capsule nicknamed "Sigma 7" for delivery to the launch pad to be mated to the Atlas launch vehicle. |
Date |
09/10/1962 |
NASA Center |
Johnson Space Center |
|
Mercury Capsule Model in Spi
Title |
Mercury Capsule Model in Spin Tunnel |
Full Description |
Mercury Capsule model in Spin Tunnel. |
Date |
9/11/1959 |
NASA Center |
Langley Research Center |
|
Mercury Space Capsule
Title |
Mercury Space Capsule |
Full Description |
The Mercury space capsule undergoing tests in Full Scale Wind Tunnel, January 1959. |
Date |
01/22/1959 |
NASA Center |
Langley Research Center |
|
Astronaut John Glenn Undergo
Title |
Astronaut John Glenn Undergoes Simulated Orbital Flight Training |
Full Description |
Astronaut John H. Glenn, Jr., undergoes a simulated orbital flight as part of his training for Project Mercury in the Manned Spacecraft Center's procedure trainer at Langley Air Force Base, Virginia. |
Date |
11/29/1961 |
NASA Center |
Kennedy Space Center |
|
Carpenter in White Room
Title |
Carpenter in White Room |
Full Description |
Inside Hangar S at the White Room Facility at Cape Canaveral, Florida, Mercury astronaut M. Scott Carpenter examines the honeycomb protective material on the main pressure bulkhead (heat shield) of his Mercury capsule nicknamed "Aurora 7. |
Date |
03/06/1962 |
NASA Center |
Johnson Space Center |
|
Project Mercury Retro and Po
Title |
Project Mercury Retro and Posigrade Package |
Full Description |
The Retro and Posigrade Package for the Mercury spacecraft. This was used to de-orbit the spacecraft at the end of mission. |
Date |
09/16/1960 |
NASA Center |
Glenn Research Center |
|
Cooper
Title |
Cooper |
Full Description |
Launch of Mercury Atlas 9 rocket with astronaut Gordon Cooper onboard from Launch Pad 14 at Cape Canaveral, Florida. |
Date |
5/15/1963 |
NASA Center |
Kennedy Space Center |
|
Shepard on Deck of Champlain
Title |
Shepard on Deck of Champlain after Recovery |
Full Description |
Astronaut Alan B. Shepard is seen on the deck of the U.S.S. Lake Champlain after the recovery of his Freedom 7 Mercury space capsule. |
Date |
05/05/1961 |
NASA Center |
Johnson Space Center |
|
Technicians working in the M
Title |
Technicians working in the McDonnell White Room on the Mercury |
Full Description |
Technicians working in the McDonnell White Room on the Mercury spacecraft. |
Date |
1960 |
NASA Center |
Headquarters |
|
Astronaut L. Gordon Cooper
Name of Image |
Astronaut L. Gordon Cooper |
Date of Image |
1959-04-27 |
Full Description |
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 of the Mercury Project. The Faith 7 spacecraft orbited the Earth 22 times in 1-1/2 days. |
|
General Description |
S62-00961 (1962) --- Mercury astronaut John H. Glenn, Jr., suited in full Mercury suit, prepares for launch of the Mercury Atlas 6 (MA-6) ?Friendship 7? spacecraft. This marks America's first manned Earth-orbiting space flight. |
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The 2003 Mercury Transit
Description |
The 2003 Mercury Transit |
|
The 2003 Mercury Transit
Description |
The 2003 Mercury Transit |
|
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