|
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. |
|
The 2003 Mercury Transit
Description |
The 2003 Mercury Transit |
|
The 2003 Mercury Transit
Description |
The 2003 Mercury Transit |
|
Glenn Enters his Mercury Cap
Title |
Glenn Enters his Mercury Capsule |
Full Description |
Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr. enters his Mercury capsule, "Friendship 7" as he prepares for launch of the Mercury-Atlas rocket. On February 20, 1962 Glenn lifted off into space aboard his Mercury Atlas 6 (MA-6) rocket and became the first American to orbit the Earth. After orbiting the Earth 3 times, Friendship 7 landed in the Atlantic Ocean 4 hours, 55 minutes and 23 seconds later, just East of Grand Turk Island in the Bahamas. Glenn and his capsule were recovered by the Navy Destroyer Noa, 21 minutes after splashdown. |
Date |
02/20/1962 |
NASA Center |
Johnson Space Center |
|
Wind Tunnel Demolition
Construction workers tear do
6/17/09
Description |
Construction workers tear down NASA Glenn's Altitude Wind Tunnel, which began operations in 1944. The tunnel played a major role in aerospace history by conducting propulsion research during World War II and hosting tests in preparation for the Mercury space program. The AWT has been idle for more than 25 years and is in poor condition. Due to safety and environmental concerns, NASA Glenn is demolishing the building. Photographer: Bridget Caswell (WYLE) |
Date |
6/17/09 |
|
Mercury: Closest Planet to t
Title |
Mercury: Closest Planet to the Sun |
Explanation |
This picture was compiled from images taken by the NASA spacecraft Mariner 10 which flew by the planet three times in 1974. Mercury [ http://seds.lpl.arizona.edu/nineplanets/nineplanets/mercury.html ] is the closest planet to the Sun [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap950813.html ], the second hottest planet (Venus gets hotter), and the second smallest planet (Pluto is smaller). Mercury [ http://www.c3.lanl.gov/~cjhamil/SolarSystem/mercury.html ] rotates so slowly that one day there - "day" meaning the normal time it takes from sunset to sunset - lasts 176 days on Earth [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap950622.html ]. It is difficult to see Mercury [ http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/photo_gallery/photogallery-mercury.html ] not because it is dim but because it always appears near the Sun, and is therefore only visible for a short time just after sunset or just before sunrise. Mercury is made of rocky material like Earth. No one knows why Mercury has the magnetic field that it does. Tomorrow's picture: Venus: Earth's Sister Planet |
|
Alan Shepard
Title |
Alan Shepard |
Full Description |
A closeup of astronaut Alan Shepard in his space suit seated inside the Mercury capsule. He is undergoing a flight simulation test with the capsule mated to the Redstone booster. |
Date |
4/29/1961 |
NASA Center |
Kennedy Space Center |
|
Mercury 3 Flight Simulation
Title |
Mercury 3 Flight Simulation |
Full Description |
Alan Shepard, one of the three prime astronauts, is being inserted into a Mercury capsule. A flight simulation test with a full countdown is programmed for Shepard to check out hardware and launch personnel activities in the Redstone launch. |
Date |
4/29/1961 |
NASA Center |
Kennedy Space Center |
|
Astronaut John Glenn During
Title |
Astronaut John Glenn During His First Orbit in Friendship 7 |
Full Description |
A weightless applesauce tube floats free following a snack by astronaut John Glenn in the course of his first orbit during the Mercury "Friendship 7" mission on February 20, 1962. |
Date |
02/20/1962 |
NASA Center |
Kennedy Space Center |
|
Cooper Departs Transfer Van
Title |
Cooper Departs Transfer Van |
Full Description |
Astronaut Gordon Cooper departing the Transfer Van in his silver pressure suit and helmet, is greeted with applause from the assembled Pad 14 employees. When he arrives at the base of the service tower, he'll ride an elevator up to where his Mercury spacecraft nicknamed, "Faith 7" awaits his arrival. |
Date |
5/15/1963 |
NASA Center |
Kennedy Space Center |
|
Shepard Enters Cleanroom
Title |
Shepard Enters Cleanroom |
Full Description |
Astronaut Alan B. Shepard, Jr., makes his way from the elevator to the cleanroom atop the service tower where he'll be inserted into his Mercury space capsule nicknamed "Freedom 7. |
Date |
5/5/1961 |
NASA Center |
Kennedy Space Center |
|
Shepard Hoisted into Recover
Title |
Shepard Hoisted into Recovery Helicopter |
Full Description |
Astronaut Alan B. Shepard is hoisted aboard a U.S. Marine helicopter after splashdown of his "Freedom 7" Mercury space capsule. |
Date |
05/05/1961 |
NASA Center |
Johnson Space Center |
|
Gordon Cooper in Helmet and
Title |
Gordon Cooper in Helmet and Pressure Suit |
Full Description |
Astronaut L. Gordon Cooper in white room, waiting for Terminal Countdown Demonstrations Test (TCDT) activities to resume in preparation for his Mercury- Atlas 9 launch. |
Date |
4/30/1963 |
NASA Center |
Kennedy Space Center |
|
Ham Retreival
Title |
Ham Retreival |
Full Description |
The famous "hand shake" welcome. Chimpanzee Ham is greeted by recovery ship Commander after his flight on the Mercury Redstone rocket. |
Date |
1/31/1961 |
NASA Center |
Kennedy Space Center |
|
Ham Tries Out His Life Suppo
Title |
Ham Tries Out His Life Support System |
Full Description |
Ham tries out his combination couch and life support system in preparation for his flight in Mercury Redstone-2 (MR-2). The couch is plugged into the circuit that normally would supply the astronaut's full pressure suit. The MR-2 flight was one in a series of flights that led to the manned orbital flights of NASA's Project Mercury program. |
Date |
01/28/1961 |
NASA Center |
Kennedy Space Center |
|
Mercury Capsule at Redstone
Name of Image |
Mercury Capsule at Redstone Test Stand |
Date of Image |
1960-01-01 |
Full Description |
Installation of the Mercury capsule on Redstone booster at the Redstone Test Stand. Assembled at the Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC), the Mercury-Redstone launch vehicle was designed to place a marned space capsule into orbital flight around the Earth and recover both safely. |
|
The Mercury Project
This 1958 scale model shows
11/19/07
Description |
This 1958 scale model shows the Mercury capsule shape B design, indicating the position of the astronaut. Image credit: NASA |
Date |
11/19/07 |
|
Walter Schirra
Pictured is astronaut Walter
11/19/07
Description |
Pictured is astronaut Walter M. Schirra, one of the original seven astronauts for Mercury Project selected by NASA on April 27, 1959. Schirra's Mercury-Atlas 8 mission, during which he piloted his Sigma 7 spacecraft, was the third manned orbital flight by the United States. Image credit: NASA |
Date |
11/19/07 |
|
Alan Shepard in Space Suit b
Title |
Alan Shepard in Space Suit before Mercury Launch |
Full Description |
Profile of astronaut Alan Shepard in his silver pressure suit with the helmet visor closed as he prepares for his upcoming Mercury-Redstone 3 (MR-3) launch. On May 5th 1961, Alan B. Shepard Jr. became the first American to fly into space. His Freedom 7 Mercury capsule flew a suborbital trajectory lasting 15 minutes 22 seconds. His spacecraft splashed down in the Atlantic Ocean where he and Freedom 7 were recovered by helicopter and transported to the awaiting aircraft carrier U.S.S. Lake Champlain. |
Date |
07/28/1961 |
NASA Center |
Johnson Space Center |
|
Mercury Astronauts in Weight
Title |
Mercury Astronauts in Weightless Flight on C-131 Aircraft |
Full Description |
Astronauts in simulated weightless flight in C-131 aircraft flying "zero-g" trajectory at Wright Air Development Center. Weightless flights were a new form of training for the Mercury astronauts and parabolic flights that briefly go beyond the Earth's tug of gravity continue to be used for spaceflight training purposes. These flights are nicknamed the "vomit comet" because of the nausea that is often induced. |
Date |
1959 |
NASA Center |
Headquarters |
|
John Glenn enters his Friend
Title |
John Glenn enters his Friendship 7 capsule |
Full Description |
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 for his flight lasting 4 hours, 55 minutes and 23 seconds. Onboard Friendship 7, Glenn became the first American to orbit the Earth, and the third American to fly in space. A faulty signal indicating a problem with the heat shield forced NASA mission controllers to cut the flight to only three orbits, but Glenn returned to Earth safely. |
Date |
02/20/1967 |
NASA Center |
Johnson Space Center |
|
View of Mercury Control Cent
Title |
View of Mercury Control Center prior to MA-8 flight |
Description |
View of Mercury Control Center prior to the Mercury-Atlas 8 (MA-8) flight of the Sigma 7. |
Date Taken |
1962-09-10 |
|
Intercrater Plains and Heavi
PIA02947
Sol (our sun)
Imaging Science Subsystem -
Title |
Intercrater Plains and Heavily Cratered Terrain |
Original Caption Released with Image |
Intercrater plains and heavily cratered terrain typical of much of Mercury outside the area affected by the formation of the Caloris basin are shown in this image (FDS 166738) taken during the spacecraft's second encounter with Mercury. Abundant shallow elongate craters and crater chains are present on the intercrater plains. North is to the top of this image, centered at 56 degrees S, 128 degrees W and 400 kilometers across. 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 Credit: NASA/JPL/Northwestern University |
|
Mercury: Photomosaic of the
PIA02236
Sol (our sun)
Imaging Science Subsystem -
Title |
Mercury: Photomosaic of the Kuiper Quadrangle H-6 |
Original Caption Released with Image |
The Kuiper Quadrangle was named in memory of Dr. Gerard Kuiper, a Mariner 10 Venus/Mercury imaging team member and well-known astronomer, who passed away several months before the spacecraft's arrival at Mercury. The Kuiper crater, located left of center, is the brightest and perhaps youngest crater is 60 km in diameter located at -11 degrees latitude and 31 degrees longitude. The Image Processing Lab at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory produced this photomosaic using computer software and techniques developed for use in processing planetary data. The images used to construct the Kuiper Quadrangle were taken during Mariner's first and third flybys of Mercury. The Mariner 10 spacecraft was launched in 1974. The spacecraft took images of Venus in February 1974 on the way to three encounters with Mercury in March and September 1974 and March 1975. The spacecraft took more than 7,000 images of Mercury, Venus, the Earth and the Moon during its mission. The Mariner 10 Mission was managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory for NASA's Office of Space Science in Washington, D.C. |
|
Mercury's Caloris Basin
title |
Mercury's Caloris Basin |
date |
03.28.1974 |
description |
Mercury: The desert closest to the sun. Computer Photomosaic of the Caloris Basin The largest basin on Mercury (1300 km or 800 miles across) was named Caloris (Greek for "hot") because it is one of the two areas on the planet that face the Sun at perihelion. The Image Processing Lab at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory produced this photomosaic using computer software and techniques developed for use in processing planetary data. The Mariner 10 spacecraft imaged the region during its initial flyby of the planet. The Mariner 10 spacecraft was launched in 1974. The spacecraft took images of Venus in February 1974 on the way to three encounters with Mercury in March and September 1974 and March 1975. The spacecraft took more than 7,000 images of Mercury, Venus, the Earth and the Moon during its mission. The Mariner 10 Mission was managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory for NASA's Office of Space Science in Washington, D.C. *Image Credit*: NASA |
|
Mercury: A Cratered Inferno
Title |
Mercury: A Cratered Inferno |
Explanation |
Mercury's surface looks similar to our Moon's. Each is heavily cratered [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap960906.html ] and made of rock. Mercury [ http://www.nineplanets.org/mercury.html ]'s diameter is about 4800 km, while the Moon [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/moon.html ]'s is slightly less at about 3500 km (compared with about 12,700 km for the Earth [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/earth.html ]). But Mercury [ http://www.oulu.fi/~spaceweb/textbook/mercury.html ] is unique in many ways. Mercury [ http://www.hawastsoc.org/solar/eng/mercury.htm ] is the closest planet to the Sun [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap960518.html ], orbiting at about 1/3 the radius of the Earth's orbit [ http://aa.usno.navy.mil/faq/docs/seasons_orbit.html ]. As Mercury [ http://pds.jpl.nasa.gov/planets/welcome/mercury.htm ] slowly rotates, its surface temperature varies from an unbearably "cold" -180 degrees Celsius [ http://www.athena.ivv.nasa.gov/curric/weather/fahrcels.html ] to an unbearably hot 400 degrees Celsius [ http://www.astro.uu.se/history/Celsius_eng.html ]. The place nearest the Sun [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap980830.html ] in Mercury [ http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/photo_gallery/photogallery-mercury.html ]'s orbit changes slightly each orbit - a fact used by Albert Einstein [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap000108.html ] to help verify the correctness of his then newly discovered theory of gravity: General Relativity [ http://www-groups.dcs.st-andrews.ac.uk/~history/HistTopics/General_relativity.html ]. The above picture [ http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/imgcat/html/object_page/m10_aom_18.html ] was taken by the only spacecraft ever to pass Mercury [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/mercury.html ]: Mariner 10 [ http://www.hawastsoc.org/solar/eng/marin10.htm ] in 1974. |
|
Launch of Mercury-Atlas
Title |
Launch of Mercury-Atlas |
Full Description |
In this Project Mercury test, a spacecraft booster by a modified Atlas was launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida. The Mercury capsule reached a peak altitude of 107 statute miles and landed 1.425 miles down range. 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 (in which Dennis Jenkins notes on page 98 that "as a space launch vehicle there is no question that Atlas has made a mark for itself, and a great deal of money for its manufacturers"). |
Date |
02/21/1961 |
NASA Center |
Kennedy Space Center |
|
Southwest Mercury
Title |
Southwest Mercury |
Explanation |
The planet Mercury resembles a moon. Mercury [ http://www.seds.org/nineplanets/nineplanets/mercury.html ]'s old surface is heavily cratered [ http://liftoff.msfc.nasa.gov/Academy/SPACE/SolarSystem/Meteors/Craters.html ] like many moons. Mercury [ http://www.solarviews.com/eng/mercury.htm ] is larger than most moons but smaller than Jupiter [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990806.html ]'s moon Ganymede [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990304.html ] and Saturn [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap960717.html ]'s moon Titan [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990207.html ]. Mercury is much denser and more massive than any moon, though, because it is made mostly of iron. In fact, the Earth [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990131.html ] is the only planet more dense. A visitor to Mercury's surface [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap960121.html ] would see some strange sights. Because Mercury [ http://www.oulu.fi/~spaceweb/textbook/mercury.html ] rotates exactly three times every two orbits around the Sun [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap951004.html ], and because Mercury [ http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/photo_gallery/photogallery-mercury.html ]'s orbit is so elliptical, a visitor to Mercury [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990102.html ] might see the Sun [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/htmltest/gifcity/interv.html ] rise, stop in the sky, go back toward the rising horizon [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990619.html ], stop again, and then set quickly over the other horizon. From Earth [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap980530.html ], Mercury's proximity to the Sun [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap981212.html ] cause it to be visible only for a short time just after sunset or just before sunrise. |
|
Southwest Mercury
Title |
Southwest Mercury |
Explanation |
The planet Mercury resembles a moon. Mercury [ http://www.nineplanets.org/mercury.html ]'s old surface is heavily cratered [ http://liftoff.msfc.nasa.gov/Academy/SPACE/SolarSystem/Meteors/Craters.html ] like many moons. Mercury [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap030216.html http://www.solarviews.com/eng/mercury.htm ] is larger than most moons but smaller than Jupiter [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990806.html ]'s moon Ganymede [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap000620.html ] and Saturn [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap021104.html ]'s moon Titan [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990207.html ]. Mercury is much denser and more massive than any moon, though, because it is made mostly of iron. In fact, the Earth [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap010204.html ] is the only planet more dense. A visitor to Mercury's surface [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap960121.html ] would see some strange sights. Because Mercury [ http://www.oulu.fi/~spaceweb/textbook/mercury.html ] rotates exactly three times every two orbits around the Sun [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/sun.html ], and because Mercury [ http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/photo_gallery/photogallery-mercury.html ]'s orbit is so elliptical, a visitor to Mercury [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap010819.html ] might see the Sun [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/htmltest/gifcity/interv.html ] rise, stop in the sky, go back toward the rising horizon [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap000320.html ], stop again, and then set quickly over the other horizon [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap011209.html ]. From Earth, Mercury's proximity to the Sun [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap981212.html ] causes it to be visible only for a short time just after sunset or just before sunrise. |
|
Mercury: A Cratered Inferno
Title |
Mercury: A Cratered Inferno |
Explanation |
Mercury's surface looks similar to our Moon's. Each is heavily cratered [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap960906.html ] and made of rock. Mercury [ http://seds.lpl.arizona.edu/nineplanets/nineplanets/mercury.html ]'s diameter is about 4800 km, while the Moon [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap950707.html ]'s is slightly less at about 3500 km (compared with about 12,700 km for the Earth [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap971026.html ]). But Mercury [ http://www.oulu.fi/~spaceweb/textbook/mercury.html ] is unique in many ways. Mercury [ http://bang.lanl.gov/solarsys/mercury.htm ] is the closest planet to the Sun [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap960518.html ], orbiting at about 1/3 the radius of the Earth's orbit. As Mercury [ http://pds.jpl.nasa.gov/planets/welcome/mercury.htm ] slowly rotates, its surface temperature varies from an unbearably "cold" -180 degrees Celsius [ http://www.athena.ivv.nasa.gov/curric/weather/fahrcels.html ] to an unbearably hot 400 degrees Celsius [ http://144.26.13.41/phyhist/celsius.htm ]. The place nearest the Sun [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap950813.html ] in Mercury [ http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/photo_gallery/PhotoGallery-Mercury.html ]'s orbit changes slightly each orbit - a fact used by Albert Einstein [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap951219.html ] to help verify the correctness of his then newly discovered theory of gravity: General Relativity [ http://rainbow.uchicago.edu/efi/general_relativity.txt.html ]. The above picture [ http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/imgcat/html/object_page/m10_aom_18.html ] was taken by the only spacecraft ever to pass Mercury [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/lib/mercury.html ]: Mariner 10 [ http://bang.lanl.gov/solarsys/marin10.htm ] in 1974. |
|
Mercury: A Cratered Inferno
Title |
Mercury: A Cratered Inferno |
Explanation |
Mercury's surface looks similar to our Moon's. Each is heavily cratered [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap960906.html ] and made of rock. Mercury [ http://seds.lpl.arizona.edu/nineplanets/nineplanets/mercury.html ]'s diameter is about 4800 km, while the Moon [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap950707.html ]'s is slightly less at about 3500 km (compared with about 12,700 km for the Earth [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap971026.html ]). But Mercury [ http://www.oulu.fi/~spaceweb/textbook/mercury.html ] is unique in many ways. Mercury [ http://www.hawastsoc.org/solar/eng/mercury.htm ] is the closest planet to the Sun [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap960518.html ], orbiting at about 1/3 the radius of the Earth's orbit. As Mercury [ http://pds.jpl.nasa.gov/planets/welcome/mercury.htm ] slowly rotates, its surface temperature varies from an unbearably "cold" -180 degrees Celsius [ http://www.athena.ivv.nasa.gov/curric/weather/fahrcels.html ] to an unbearably hot 400 degrees Celsius [ http://144.26.13.41/phyhist/celsius.htm ]. The place nearest the Sun [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap950813.html ] in Mercury [ http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/photo_gallery/PhotoGallery-Mercury.html ]'s orbit changes slightly each orbit - a fact used by Albert Einstein [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap980927.html ] to help verify the correctness of his then newly discovered theory of gravity: General Relativity [ http://rainbow.uchicago.edu/efi/general_relativity.txt.html ]. The above picture [ http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/imgcat/html/object_page/m10_aom_18.html ] was taken by the only spacecraft ever to pass Mercury [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/lib/mercury.html ]: Mariner 10 [ http://www.hawastsoc.org/solar/eng/marin10.htm ] in 1974. |
|
Molded Astronaut Couches
Title |
Molded Astronaut Couches |
Full Description |
Molded astronaut couches line the NASA Langley Research Centers model shop wall. The names of the test subjects (Langley employees) are written on the back. The couches are similar to those made for each astronaut and fitted into the Mercury capsules for manned spaceflight. |
Date |
07/07/1959 |
NASA Center |
Langley Research Center |
|
Astronaut John Glenn in a St
Title |
Astronaut John Glenn in a State of Weightlessness During Friendship |
Full Description |
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 as these pictures were taken. |
Date |
02/20/1962 |
NASA Center |
Kennedy Space Center |
|
Big Joe Ready for Launch at
Title |
Big Joe Ready for Launch at Cape Canaveral |
Full Description |
Big Joe ready for launch at Cape Canaveral, FL. The objective of "Big Joe" was to test the ablating heatshield. The flight was both a success and failure ? the heatshield survived reentry and was in remarkably good condition when retrieved from the Atlantic. The Atlas-D booster, however, failed to stage and separated too late from the Mercury capsule. |
Date |
09/09/1959 |
NASA Center |
Headquarters |
|
Project Mercury Altitude Win
Title |
Project Mercury Altitude Wind Tunnel Gimbaling Rig |
Full Description |
MASTIF - Multiple Axis Space Test Inertia Facility - was developed for Project Mercury to train astronauts in gaining control over a spacecraft that could move in multiple directions at once--pitching, rolling and yawing all at the same time. This photo is similar to photo GPN-2000-001186, but not identical. |
Date |
12/16/1959 |
NASA Center |
Glenn Research Center |
|
Cooper Inside Faith 7 After
Title |
Cooper Inside Faith 7 After Hatch is Blown |
Full Description |
Astronaut L. Gordon Cooper Jr., has a smile for the recovery crew of the U.S.S. Kearsarge, after he is on board from a successful 22 orbit mission of the Earth in his Mercury spacecraft "Faith 7." Cooper is still sitting in his capsule, with his helmet off. |
Date |
05/16/1963 |
NASA Center |
Johnson Space Center |
|
Grissom Onboard the USS Rand
Title |
Grissom Onboard the USS Randolph |
Full Description |
Astronaut Virgil I. "Gus" Grissom, pilot of the Mercury spacecraft, "Liberty Bell 7" arrives aboard the recovery ship, U.S.S. Randolph, following his 15 minute 37 seconds suborbital space mission. He is flanked by military medical officers. Grissom's capsule sank soon after splashdown and was not recovered until nearly forty years later. |
Date |
07/21/1961 |
NASA Center |
Johnson Space Center |
|
Little Joe on launcher at Wa
Title |
Little Joe on launcher at Wallops Island |
Full Description |
Little Joe on launcher at Wallops Island. Little Joe was a major project for Langley. It was a test of the escape and recovery systems on the Mercury spacecraft. |
Date |
8/21/1959 |
NASA Center |
Langley Research Center |
|
Mercury: Photomosaic of the
PIA00067
Sol (our sun)
Imaging Science Subsystem -
Title |
Mercury: Photomosaic of the Shakespeare Quadrangle of Mercury (Southern Half) H-3 |
Original Caption Released with Image |
This computer generated photomosaic from Mariner 10 is of the southern half of Mercury's Shakespeare Quadrangle, named for the ancient Shakespeare crater located on the upper edge to the left of center. This portion of the quadrangle covers the geographic region from 20 to 45 degrees north latitude and from 90 to 180 degrees longitude. The photomosaic was produced using computer techniques and software developed in the Image Processing Laboratory of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. The pictures have been high-pass filtered and contrast enhanced to accentuate surface detail, and geometrically transformed into a Lambert conformal projection. Well defined bright streaks or ray systems radiating away from craters constitute another distinctive feature of the Mercurian surface, remarkably similar to the Moon. The rays cut across and are superimposed on all other surface features, indicating that the source craters are the youngest topographic features on the surface of Mercury. The above material was taken from the following publication... Davies, M. E., S. E. Dwornik, D. E. Gault, and R. G. Strom, Atlas of Mercury,NASA SP-423 (1978). The Mariner 10 mission was managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory for NASA's Office of Space Science. |
|
Mercury's South Pole
PIA02415
Sol (our sun)
Imaging Science Subsystem -
Title |
Mercury's South Pole |
Original Caption Released with Image |
After passing Mercury the first time and making a trip around the Sun, Mariner 10 again flew by Mercury on September 21 at 1:59 PMPDT. This encounter brought the spacecraft in front of Mercury in the southern hemisphere. In this frame south is down, the south pole is located on the right hand edge of the large crater that has only its rim sticking up into the light (Chao Meng Fu crater). When this frame (FDS 166902) was acquired Mariner 10 was about 83,000 km from 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 Credit: NASA/JPL/Northwestern University |
|
Astronaut Scott Carpenter
Name of Image |
Astronaut Scott Carpenter |
Date of Image |
1959-04-27 |
Full Description |
Astronaut Scott Carpenter, one of the original seven astronauts for Mercury Project selected by NASA on April 27, 1959. Boosted by the Mercury-Atlas vehicle, the MA-7 mission made the second marned orbital flight by the United States, and carried Astronaut Carpenter aboard Aurora 7 spacecraft to orbit the Earth three times. |
|
Astronaut John H. Glenn
Name of Image |
Astronaut John H. Glenn |
Date of Image |
1959-04-27 |
Full Description |
Astronaut John H. Glenn, one of the original seven astronauts for Mercury Project selected by NASA on April 27, 1959. The MA-6 mission, boosted by the Mercury-Atlas vehicle, was the first manned orbital launch by the United States, and carried Astronaut Glenn aboard the Friendship 7 spacecraft to orbit the Earth. |
|
Astronaut Walter M. Schirra
Name of Image |
Astronaut Walter M. Schirra |
Date of Image |
1959-04-27 |
Full Description |
Astronaut Walter M. "Wally" Schirra, one of the original seven astronauts for Mercury Project selected by NASA on April 27, 1959. The MA-8 (Mercury-Atlas) mission with Sigma 7 spacecraft was the third marned orbital flight by the United States, and made the six orbits in 9-1/4 hours. |
|
Ham in Spacesuit
Name of Image |
Ham in Spacesuit |
Date of Image |
1961-01-01 |
Full Description |
Ham, a three-year-old chimpanzee, in the spacesuit he would wear for the second Mercury- Redstone (MR-2) suborbital test flight in January, 1961. NASA used chimpanzees and other primates to test the Mercury capsule before launching the fisrt American astronaut, Alan Shepard, in May 1961. The Mercury capsule rode atop a modified Redstone rocket, developed by Dr. Wernher von Braun and the German Rocket Team in Huntsville, Alabama. |
|
Mercury-Redstone Tail Sectio
Name of Image |
Mercury-Redstone Tail Sections |
Date of Image |
1959-01-01 |
Full Description |
In this 1959 photograph, technicians prepare tail sections for Mercury-Redstone vehicles in Building 4706 at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Alabama. Developed by Dr. Wernher von Braun and the rocket team at Redstone, the Mercury-Redstone launched the first two marned U.S. missions. |
|
Grissom Awaits MR-4
Name of Image |
Grissom Awaits MR-4 |
Date of Image |
1961-07-21 |
Full Description |
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 altitude of 118 miles and traveled 303 miles downrange. It was the fourth flight of the Mercury-Redstone launch vehicle (MR-4), developed by Dr. Wernher von Braun and the rocket team in Huntsville, Alabama. |
|
Recovery of Mercury spacecra
Title |
Recovery of Mercury spacecraft and chimpanzee Ham after MR-2 flight |
Description |
Recovery personnel aboard the U.S.S. Donner remove Ham, a 37 pound chimpanzee, from a Mercury spacecraft following the successful Mercury-Redstone 2 suborbital flight from Cape Canveral, Florida. |
Date Taken |
1961-01-31 |
|
Launch of Mercury-Atlas 2 ve
Title |
Launch of Mercury-Atlas 2 vehicle on Feb. 21, 1961 |
Description |
MERCURY-ATLAS 2 LAUNCH --- Launch of the unmanned, sub-orbital Mercury-Atlas 2 vehicle on Feb. 21, 1961. Altitude was 108 miles, speed, 13,000 mph. The capsule was recovered 1,425 miles downrange. |
Date Taken |
1961-02-21 |
|
Attempted Recovery of Mercur
Title |
Attempted Recovery of Mercury spacecraft at end of MR-4 mission |
Description |
Attempted recovery of Mercury spacecraft at end of the Mercury-Redstone 4 (MR-4) mission. View shows the Marine helicopter dropping a recovery line to the capsule. In the upper left corner of the view, the recovery ship and another helicopter can be seen. |
Date Taken |
1961-07-27 |
|
Attempted Recovery of Mercur
Title |
Attempted Recovery of Mercury spacecraft at end of MR-4 mission |
Description |
Attempted recovery of Mercury spacecraft at end of the Mercury-Redstone 4 (MR-4) mission. A crewman in the helecopter lowers the recovery cable towards the capsule. |
Date Taken |
1961-07-27 |
|
Attempted Recovery of Mercur
Title |
Attempted Recovery of Mercury spacecraft at end of MR-4 mission |
Description |
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 capsule, which filled with water. Behind the Marine helicopter, a Navy helicopter prepares to assist. |
Date Taken |
1961-07-27 |
|
Attempted Recovery of Mercur
Title |
Attempted Recovery of Mercury spacecraft at end of MR-4 mission |
Description |
Attempted recovery of Mercury spacecraft at end of the Mercury-Redstone 4 (MR-4) mission. View shows the Marine helicopter has attached a line to the capsule and is attempting to pull it up. |
Date Taken |
1961-07-27 |
|
Attempted Recovery of Mercur
Title |
Attempted Recovery of Mercury spacecraft at end of MR-4 mission |
Description |
Attempted recovery of Mercury spacecraft at end of the Mercury-Redstone 4 (MR-4) mission. View shows the top of the capsule before it sinks beneath the waves. |
Date Taken |
1961-07-27 |
|
Attempted Recovery of Mercur
Title |
Attempted Recovery of Mercury spacecraft at end of MA-4 mission |
Description |
Attempted recovery of Mercury spacecraft at end of the Mercury-Redstone 4 (MA-4) mission. Notice the extended antenna on top of the capsule. |
Date Taken |
1961-07-21 |
|
Close-up view of Astronaut J
Title |
Close-up view of Astronaut John Glenn being inserted into Mercury capsule |
Description |
Close-up view of Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr. being inserted into his Mercury capsule (the Friendship 7) for the start of the Mercury-Atlas 6 mission. |
Date Taken |
1962-02-20 |
|
View of Mercury spacecraft h
Title |
View of Mercury spacecraft heat shield seen after MR-2 flight |
Description |
Mercury spacecraft #6 heat shield clearly shows the effects of re-entry heat as it is hoisted aboard the recovery ship downrange after the Mercury-Atlas 2 flight. |
Date Taken |
1964-04-14 |
|
Mercury's South Pole
title |
Mercury's South Pole |
date |
09.21.1974 |
description |
Mercury's south pole was photographed by one of Mariner 10's TV cameras as the spacecraft made its second close flyby of the planet September 21. The pole is located inside the large crater (180 kilometers, 110 miles) on Mercury's limb (lower center). The crater floor is shadowed and its far rim, illuminated by the sun, appears to de disconnected from the edge of the planet. Just above and to the right of the South Pole is a double ring basin about 100 kilometers (125 miles) in diameter. A bright ray system, splashed out of a 50 kilometer (30 mile) crater is seen at upper right. The stripe across the top is an artifact introduced during computer processing. The picture (FDS 166902) was taken from a distance of 85,800 kilometers (53,200 miles) less than two hours after Mariner 10 reached its closest point to the planet. 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 Credit*: NASA/JPL/Northwestern University |
|
Southwest Mercury
Title |
Southwest Mercury |
Explanation |
The planet Mercury resembles a moon. Mercury [ http://seds.lpl.arizona.edu/nineplanets/nineplanets/mercury.html ]'s old surface is heavily cratered [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap950924.html ] like many moons. Mercury [ http://bang.lanl.gov/solarsys/mercury.htm ] is larger than most moons but smaller than Jupiter [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap951013.html ]'s moon Ganymede [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap950904.html ] and Saturn [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap960717.html ]'s moon Titan [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap950923.html ]. Mercury is much denser and more massive than any moon, though, because it is made mostly of iron. In fact, the Earth [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap960819.html ] is the only planet more dense. A visitor to Mercury's surface [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap960121.html ] would see some strange sights. Because Mercury [ http://www.oulu.fi/~spaceweb/textbook/mercury.html ]rotates exactly three times every two orbits around the Sun [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap951004.html ], and because Mercury [ http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/photo_gallery/PhotoGallery-Mercury.html ]'s orbit is so elliptical, a visitor to Mercury [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap960912.html ] might see the Sun [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/htmltest/gifcity/interv.html ] rise, stop in the sky, go back toward the rising horizon [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap951114.html ], stop again, and then set quickly over the other horizon. From Earth [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap951118.html ], Mercury's proximity to the Sun [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap960727.html ] cause it to be visible only for a short time [ http://www.maths.qmw.ac.uk/~lms/research/skyeye.html#planet ] just after sunset or just before sunrise. |
|
Shepard Completes His Missio
On May 5, 1961, NASA astrona
5/5/09
Description |
On May 5, 1961, NASA astronaut Alan Shepard piloted his Freedom 7 Mercury capsule in a 15-minute suborbital flight, becoming America's first astronaut.... |
Date |
5/5/09 |
|
Mercury: Photomosaic of Bore
PIA02243
Sol (our sun)
Imaging Science Subsystem -
Title |
Mercury: Photomosaic of Borealis Quadrangle H-1 |
Original Caption Released with Image |
H-1 Computer Photomosaic of the Borealis Area of Mercury The Borealis Region, located in Mercury's northern hemisphere, was imaged by the Mariner 10 spacecraft during its initial approach to the planet. The north pole is visible at the top of the image. The Image Processing Lab at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory produced this photomosaic using computer software and techniques developed for use in processing planetary data. The images used to construct the Borealis photomosaic were taken during Mariner's flyby of Mercury. The Mariner 10 spacecraft imaged Venus in February 1974 on the way to three encounters with Mercury in March and September 1974 and in March 1975. The spacecraft took 7,000 images of during its mission. The Mariner 10 mission was managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory for NASA's Office of Space Science. |
|
Mercury: Beethoven Quadrangl
PIA02255
Sol (our sun)
Imaging Science Subsystem -
Title |
Mercury: Beethoven Quadrangle, H-7 |
Original Caption Released with Image |
Mercury: Computer Photomosaic of the Beethoven Quadrangle, H-7 The Beethoven Quadrangle, named for the 19th century classical German composer, lies in Mercury's Equatorial Mercator located between longitude 740 to 1440. The Mariner 10 spacecraft imaged the region during its initial flyby of the planet. The Image Processing Lab at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory produced this photomosaic using computer software and techniques developed for use in processing planetary data. The images used to construct the Beethoven Quadrangle were taken as Mariner 10 flew passed Mercury. The Mariner 10 spacecraft was launched in 1974. The spacecraft took images of Venus in February 1974 on the way to three encounters with Mercury in March and September 1974 and March 1975. The spacecraft took more than 7,000 images of Mercury, Venus, the Earth and the Moon during its mission. The Mariner 10 Mission was managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory for NASA's Office of Space Science in Washington, D.C. |
|
Glenn Suits-Up for Launch
Title |
Glenn Suits-Up for Launch |
Full Description |
Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr. dons his silver Mercury pressure suit in preparation for launch. On February 20, 1962 Glenn lifted off into space aboard his Mercury Atlas (MA-6) rocket and became the first American to orbit the Earth. After orbiting the Earth 3 times, Friendship 7 landed in the Atlantic Ocean 4 hours, 55 minutes and 23 seconds later, just East of Grand Turk Island in the Bahamas. Glenn and his capsule were recovered by the Navy Destroyer Noa, 21 minutes after splashdown. |
Date |
02/20/1962 |
NASA Center |
Johnson Space Center |
|
Grissom Climbs into Liberty
Title |
Grissom Climbs into Liberty Bell 7 |
Full Description |
Astronaut Virgil I. Grissom climbs into "Liberty Bell 7" spacecraft the morning of July 21, 1961. Backup Astronaut John Glenn assists in the operation. The Mercury-Redstone 4(MR-4) successfully launched the Liberty Bell 7 at 7:20 am EST on July 21, 1961. MR-4 was the second in a series of successful U.S. manned suborbital flights. |
Date |
07/21/1961 |
NASA Center |
Johnson Space Center |
|
John Glenn OK
Title |
John Glenn OK |
Full Description |
Astronaut John Glenn and technicians inspect artwork that will be painted on the outside of his Mercury spacecraft. John Glenn nicknamed his capsule "Friendship 7". On February 20, 1962 astronaut John H. Glenn Jr. lifted off into space aboard his Mercury Atlas (MA-6) rocket and became the first American to orbit the Earth. After orbiting the Earth 3 times, Friendship 7 landed in the Atlantic Ocean 4 hours, 55 minutes and 23 seconds later, just East of Grand Turk Island in the Bahamas. Glenn and his capsule were recovered by the Navy Destroyer Noa, 21 minutes after splashdown. |
Date |
02/02/1962 |
NASA Center |
Johnson Space Center |
|
Astronaut Alan Shepard on U.
Title |
Astronaut Alan Shepard on U.S. Champlain after recovery of Mercury capsule |
Description |
Astronaut Alan B. Shepard is seen on the deck of the U.S. Champlain after the recovery of his Mercury capsule. |
Date Taken |
1988-03-25 |
|
Astronaut Alan Shepard on U.
Title |
Astronaut Alan Shepard on U.S. Champlain after recovery of Mercury capsule |
Description |
Astronaut Alan B. Shepard is seen on the deck of the U.S. Champlain after the recovery of his Mercury capsule. |
Date Taken |
1961-05-05 |
|
Mercury-Redstone 1-A liftoff
Title |
Mercury-Redstone 1-A liftoff |
Description |
Mercury-Redstone 1-A liftoff from Cape Canaveral on Dec. 19, 1960. |
Date Taken |
1960-12-19 |
|
Full-length portrait of Merc
Title |
Full-length portrait of Mercury Astronaut L. Gordon Cooper Jr. in spacesuit |
Description |
Full-length portrait of Mercury Astronaut L. Gordon Cooper Jr., in spacesuit during Mercury-Atlas 9 prelaunch activities. |
Date Taken |
1963-02-26 |
|
Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr.
Title |
Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr. in his Mercury spacesuit |
Description |
Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr. in his Mercury spacesuit. This photograph was taken at Cape Canaveral during Mercury-Atlas 6 preflight training activity. |
Date Taken |
1964-02-27 |
|
X-48C in Langley Full-Scale
An historic wind tunnel at N
9/4/09
Description |
An historic wind tunnel at NASA's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va., is helping test the prototype of a new, more fuel-efficient, quieter aircraft design. Boeing Research & Technology, Huntington Beach, Calif., has partnered with NASA's Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate and the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory, Wright Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, to explore and validate the structural, aerodynamic and operational advantages of an advanced hybrid wing body concept called the blended wing body or BWB. NASA is flight testing one version of a 21-foot (6.4 m) wingspan BWB prototype, called the X-48B, at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, at Edwards AFB, Calif. The other one being tested in the Langley Full-Scale Tunnel is the X-48C. It has been modified to make it quieter. Those modifications include reducing the number of engines from three to two and the installation of noise-shielding vertical fins. The wind tunnel tests are assessing the aerodynamic effects of those modifications. NASA Langley owns the tunnel, but leased it to Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Va., for more than 10 years for research and student engineering training. Cranfield Aerospace Ltd., Cranfield, England, built the ground-breaking prototypes to Boeing Research & Technology's specifications. Made primarily of advanced lightweight composite materials, the prototypes weigh about 400 pounds (181 kg) each. The Air Force is interested in a full-scale version's potential as a multi-role, long-range, high-capacity military aircraft. This is the second time this aircraft has been put through its paces at the historic tunnel that was built in 1930 and has been used to test everything from World War II fighters, to the Mercury capsule, to concepts for a supersonic transport. In 2006, preliminary tests helped engineers determine how it would fly during remotely piloted flights. Blended wing body designs are different than traditional tube and wing aircraft. One is that they rely primarily on multiple control surfaces on the wing for stability and control. Another is that they blend tube and wings for lower drag and better lift. Credit: NASA/Sean Smith |
Date |
9/4/09 |
|
Mercury Atlas
Name of Image |
Mercury Atlas |
Date of Image |
1961-02-24 |
Full Description |
The launch of the Mercury Atlas (MA-2), an unmarned suborbital Mercury capsule test on February 24, 1961. |
|
Installing Mercury Capsule
Name of Image |
Installing Mercury Capsule |
Date of Image |
1959-01-01 |
Full Description |
This photograph depicts installation of the Mercury capsule and escape system on top of a booster prior to test firing of the Mercury-Redstone launch vehicle at the Marshall Space Flight Center. |
|
Preparations for Redstone Fi
Name of Image |
Preparations for Redstone Firing |
Date of Image |
1950-01-01 |
Full Description |
This photograph shows the installation of a Mercury capsule and escape system on top of a booster prior to test firing of the Mercury-Redstone at Marshall Space Flight Center's (MSFC's) Redstone Test Stand. Assembled by MSFC, the Mercury-Redstone was designed to place a marned space capsule in orbital flight around the Earth and recover both safely. |
|
Officials Stand Before Mercu
Name of Image |
Officials Stand Before Mercury-Redstone Booster |
Date of Image |
2004-04-15 |
Full Description |
This photograph shows a group of officials standing before a Mercury-Redstone booster at the Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC). Among those in the photograph are astronauts James Lovell, Walter Schirra, and Gus Grissom. Also pictured is Joachim Kuettner who managed responsibilities of MSFC's Mercury-Redstone program. |
|
Early Rocketry Models
Name of Image |
Early Rocketry Models |
Date of Image |
1967-10-17 |
Full Description |
Photographed are models of early rocketry: The Atlas Mercury, Redstone Mercury, and Saturn C-1. |
|
Lobate Scarps within the Hum
PIA02426
Sol (our sun)
Imaging Science Subsystem -
Title |
Lobate Scarps within the Hummocky Plains East of Caloris Basin |
Original Caption Released with Image |
Plains material east of the Caloris basin is shown this image (FDS 191) acquired during the spacecraft's first encounter with Mercury. Several west-facing lobate scarps occur in the hummocky plains interpreted as Caloris ejecta and may be short flow fronts of partially melted ejecta which flowed back toward the basin after deposition. 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 Credit: NASA/JPL/Northwestern University |
|
Large Mercurian Crater
PIA02424
Sol (our sun)
Imaging Science Subsystem -
Title |
Large Mercurian Crater |
Original Caption Released with Image |
This image (FDS 166), acquired during the spacecraft's first encounter with Mercury, features a 140 kilometer diameter crater and it's surrounding zone of secondary craters. The narrow width of the rim facies, the prominent subradial secondary crater chains, and grooves are representative of the larger mercurian craters. 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 Credit: NASA/JPL/Northwestern University |
|
Antoniadi Ridge
PIA02430
Sol (our sun)
Imaging Science Subsystem -
Title |
Antoniadi Ridge |
Original Caption Released with Image |
Antoniadi Ridge, over 450 kilometers long, runs along the right side of this image. The ridge transects a large crater (80-km in diameter) and in turn appears to be interrupted by an irregular rimless depression on the floor of the crater. This ridge also crosses smooth plains to the north and intercrater plains to the south of the large crater. This image (FDS 27325) was acquired 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 Credit: NASA/JPL/Northwestern University |
|
Astronaut Escape Testing
Title |
Astronaut Escape Testing |
Full Description |
Mercury-Redstone 3 (MR-3) flight configuration with cherry picker, on one of many tests conducted to evaluate astronaut escape feasibility. |
Date |
4/29/1961 |
NASA Center |
Kennedy Space Center |
|
Astronaut John Glenn being H
Title |
Astronaut John Glenn being Honored |
Full Description |
Astronaut John Glenn, Jr. is honored by President John F. Kennedy after his historical first manned orbital flight. The ceremony is being held at the Manned Spacecraft Center in Langley, Virginia. The Center moved to Houston, Texas later that year, where it continues to reside. |
Date |
2/23/1962 |
NASA Center |
Johnson Space Center |
|
Cooper and Capsule on Deck
Title |
Cooper and Capsule on Deck |
Full Description |
Recovery personnel bring the Mercury space capsule "Faith 7" onboard the recovery ship U.S.S. Kearsarge with astronaut Gordon Cooper still inside. Once secured on deck, Cooper will jettison the Capsule's hatch allowing for his removal. |
Date |
05/16/1963 |
NASA Center |
Johnson Space Center |
|
Cooper Egressing "Faith 7
Title |
Cooper Egressing "Faith 7 |
Full Description |
Astronaut L. Gordon Cooper is assisted in backing out of his Mecury capsule "Faith 7" after a 600,000 mile, 22.9 orbit journey around the Earth. He elected to remain in the spacecraft until it was hoisted to the deck of the Kearsarge, as did Astronaut Walter Schirra during the previous mission. |
Date |
05/16/1963 |
NASA Center |
Johnson Space Center |
|
Freedom 7 Prelaunch
Title |
Freedom 7 Prelaunch |
Full Description |
Astronaut Virgil I. "Gus" Grissom wishes Alan B. Shepard a safe flight just before insertion into the Freedom 7 spacecraft mated on the Redstone rocket. |
Date |
5/5/1961 |
NASA Center |
Kennedy Space Center |
|
Ham Launch
Title |
Ham Launch |
Full Description |
Mercury-Redstone 2 (MR-2) Launch with chimpanzee Ham aboard. Monkeys had been flown into space before, but Ham was the first higher primate to test a spacecraft. |
Date |
1/31/1961 |
NASA Center |
Kennedy Space Center |
|
John Glenn Entering Friendsh
Title |
John Glenn Entering Friendship 7 |
Full Description |
Overall view of astronaut John Glenn, Jr., as he enters into the spacecraft Friendship 7 prior to MA-6 launch operations at Launch Complex 14. Astronaut Glenn is entering his spacecraft to begin the first American manned Earth orbital mission. |
Date |
2/20/1962 |
NASA Center |
Kennedy Space Center |
|
Launch of Freedom 7
Title |
Launch of Freedom 7 |
Full Description |
Launch of Freedom 7, the first American manned suborbital space flight. Astronaut Alan Shepard aboard, the Mercury-Redstone (MR-3) rocket is launched from Pad 5. |
Date |
5/5/1961 |
NASA Center |
Kennedy Space Center |
|
Kuiper Crater
PIA02411
Sol (our sun)
Imaging Science Subsystem -
Title |
Kuiper Crater |
Original Caption Released with Image |
The Mariner 10 Television-Science Team has proposed the name "Kuiper" for this very conspicuous bright Mercury crater (top center) on the rim of a larger older crater. Prof. Gerard P. Kuiper, a pioneer in planetary astronomy and a member of the Mariner 10 TV team, died December 23, 1973, while the spacecraft was enroute to Venus and Mercury. Mariner took this picture (FDS 27304) from 88,450 kilometers (55,000 miles) some 2 1/2 hours before it passed Mercury on March 29. The bright-floored crater, 41 kilometers (25 miles) in diameter, is the center of a very large bright are which could be seen in pictures sent from Mariner 10 while Mercury was more than two million miles distant. The larger crater is 80 kilometers (50 miles) across. 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 Credit: NASA/JPL/Northwestern University |
|
Hero Rupes Scarp
PIA02413
Sol (our sun)
Imaging Science Subsystem -
Title |
Hero Rupes Scarp |
Original Caption Released with Image |
After passing Mercury the first time and making a trip around the Sun, Mariner 10 again flew by Mercury on September 21 at 1:59 PMPDT. This encounter brought the spacecraft in front of Mercury in the southern hemisphere. Hero Rupes, the large scarp visible running across the bottom of the image, is thought to thought to have been formed by global tectonic forces, possibly due to shrinkage of the planet as it cooled. Mariner 10 was looking obliquely across Mercury's southern hemisphere when it acquired this dramatic shot near the beginning of its southern hemisphere pass (FDS166618). 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 Credit: NASA/JPL/Northwestern University |
|
Similarities to Lunar Highla
PIA02414
Sol (our sun)
Imaging Science Subsystem -
Title |
Similarities to Lunar Highlands |
Original Caption Released with Image |
After passing Mercury the first time and making a trip around the Sun, Mariner 10 again flew by Mercury on September 21 at 1:59 PMPDT. This encounter brought the spacecraft in front of Mercury in the southern hemisphere. Much of Mercury looks like the lunar highlands, a scene carved by billions of years of impact craters. This image (FDS 166724)was taken when Mariner 10 was near its closest approach to the planet during the second encounter, about 50,000 km. This image is found near the center of the area not imaged during the first encounter. 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 Credit: NASA/JPL/Northwestern University |
|
Photomosaic of Mercury - Out
PIA03104
Sol (our sun)
Imaging Science Subsystem -
Title |
Photomosaic of Mercury - Outbound View |
Original Caption Released with Image |
After passing on the darkside of the planet, Mariner 10 photographed the other, somewhat more illuminated hemisphere of Mercury. The north pole is at the top, two-thirds down from which is the equator. The Mariner 10 spacecraft was launched in 1974. The spacecraft took images of Venus in February 1974 on the way to three encounters with Mercury in March and September 1974 and March 1975. The spacecraft took more than 7,000 images of Mercury, Venus, the Earth and the Moon during its mission. The Mariner 10 Mission was managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory for NASA's Office of Space Science in Washington, D.C. |
|
Mercury's Caloris Basin
PIA03102
Sol (our sun)
Imaging Science Subsystem -
Title |
Mercury's Caloris Basin |
Original Caption Released with Image |
Mercury: Computer Photomosaic of the Caloris Basin The largest basin on Mercury (1300 km or 800 miles across) was named Caloris (Greek for "hot") because it is one of the two areas on the planet that face the Sun at perihelion. The Image Processing Lab at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory produced this photomosaic using computer software and techniques developed for use in processing planetary data. The Mariner 10 spacecraft imaged the region during its initial flyby of the planet. The Mariner 10 spacecraft was launched in 1974. The spacecraft took images of Venus in February 1974 on the way to three encounters with Mercury in March and September 1974 and March 1975. The spacecraft took more than 7,000 images of Mercury, Venus, the Earth and the Moon during its mission. The Mariner 10 Mission was managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory for NASA's Office of Space Science in Washington, D.C. |
|
Photomosaic of Mercury - Inb
PIA03103
Sol (our sun)
Imaging Science Subsystem -
Title |
Photomosaic of Mercury - Inbound View |
Original Caption Released with Image |
This is a mosaic of images taken of Mercury taken from 125,000 miles away. The tiny, brightly rayed crater (just below center top) was the first recognizable feature on the planet's surface and was named in memory of astronomer Gerard Kuiper, a Mariner 10 team member. The Mariner 10 spacecraft was launched in 1974. The spacecraft took images of Venus in February 1974 on the way to three encounters with Mercury in March and September 1974 and March 1975. The spacecraft took more than 7,000 images of Mercury, Venus, the Earth and the Moon during its mission. The Mariner 10 Mission was managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory for NASA's Office of Space Science in Washington, D.C. |
|
3D Mercury Transit
Title |
3D Mercury Transit |
Explanation |
Mercury is now [ http://www.astronomy.com/ASY/CS/forums/314872/ ShowPost.aspx ] visible shortly before dawn, the brightest "star" just above the eastern horizon. But almost two weeks ago Mercury [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap061114.html ] actually crossed the face of the Sun for the second time in the 21st century. Viewed with red/blue glasses [ http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/Help/VendorList.html ], this stereo anaglyph combines space-based images of the Sun and innermost planet in a just-for-fun 3D [ http://www.sungazer.net/3dtransit.html ] presentation of the Mercury transit [ http://www.transitofvenus.org/mercury.htm ]. The solar disk image is from Hinode [ http://solarb.msfc.nasa.gov/index.html ]. (sounds like "hee-no-day", means sunrise). A sun-staring observatory, Hinode was launched from Uchinoura Space Center and viewed the transit [ http://solar-b.nao.ac.jp/news_e/20061109_e.shtml ] from Earth orbit. Superimposed on Mercury's dark silhouette is a detailed image [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap011124.html ] of the planet's rugged surface based on data from the Mariner 10 [ http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/tmp/1973-085A.html ] probe that flew by Mercury in 1974 and 1975. |
|
Mercury Astronauts and a Red
Title |
Mercury Astronauts and a Redstone |
Explanation |
Space suited project Mercury [ http://www.ksc.nasa.gov/history/mercury/mercury.html ] astronauts John H. Glenn [ http://politicsusa.com/PoliticsUSA/resources/almanac/ohs1.html.cgi ], Virgil I. Grissom [ http://repos.msfc.nasa.gov/history/mm/grisbio.html ], and Alan B. Shepard Jr. [ http://repos.msfc.nasa.gov/history/mm/shepbio.html ] (left to right) are pictured here posing in front of a Redstone rocket [ http://www.redstone.army.mil/history/pioneer.html ] in this 1961 NASA publicity photo. Project Mercury [ http://www.osf.hq.nasa.gov/mercury/ ] was the first U.S. program designed to put humans in space. It resulted in 6 manned flights using one-man capsules and Redstone and Atlas rockets. Shortly after the first U.S. manned flight on May 5, 1961, a suborbital flight piloted by Alan Shepard, President Kennedy announced the goal of a manned lunar landing by 1970. This goal was achieved by NASA's Apollo program [ http://bang.lanl.gov/solarsys/apo14.htm ] and Shepard himself walked on the moon as a member of the Apollo 14 [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap951209.html ] mission. |
|
Mercury's Caloris Basin
Title |
Mercury's Caloris Basin |
Explanation |
Mercury [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap950814.html ], the closest planet to the Sun [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap950813.html ], has a surface with so many craters it resembles the Earth [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap950622.html ]'s Moon [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap950707.html ]. The largest surface feature on Mercury [ http://seds.lpl.arizona.edu/nineplanets/nineplanets/mercury.html ] is the Caloris Basin, which resulted from a collision with an asteroid [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap951020.html ]. The basin, which is more that 1000 kilometers across, is visible as the large circular feature at the bottom of the above photograph. Similar features, such as the Mare Orientale [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap960112.html ], are seen on the Moon. The Caloris Basin gets very hot because it is near the "sub-solar point" - the point on Mercury [ http://bang.lanl.gov/solarsys/mercury.htm ]'s surface that is directly under the Sun [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap951004.html ] when Mercury [ http://stardust.jpl.nasa.gov/planets/welcome/mercury.htm ] is closest to the Sun [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap951024.html ]. |
|
Mercury And The Sun
Title |
Mercury And The Sun |
Explanation |
Just days before the peak of the Leonid meteor shower [ http://www.arm.ac.uk/leonid/latest.html ], skywatchers were offered another astronomical treat as planet Mercury [ http://pds.jpl.nasa.gov/planets/welcome/mercury.htm ] crossed the face of the Sun on November 15. Viewed from [ http://space.jpl.nasa.gov/ ] planet Earth, a transit of Mercury [ http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse/OH/transit99.html ] is not all that rare. The last [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap991106.html ] occurred in 1993 and the next will happen in 2003. Enjoying a mercurial transit does require an appropriately filtered telescope, still the event can be dramatic as the diminutive well-done [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap991111.html ] world drifts past [ http://www2.astronomy.com/astro/Magazine/Astindex/1999/99Nov/ Transit.html ] the dominating solar disk. This slow loading gif animation [ http://lambic.physics.montana.edu/~handy/trace/mercury/ ] is based on images recorded by the earth-orbiting TRACE [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap980515.html ] satellite. The false-color TRACE images [ http://canopy.lmsal.com/schryver/Public/mercury.html ] were made in ultraviolet light and tend to show the hot gas just above the Sun's visible surface. Mercury's disk is silhouetted [ http://chippewa.nascom.nasa.gov/~dcm/transit/transit.html ] against the seething plasma as it follows a trajectory near the edge of the Sun. |
|
MA-1 Capsule Reassembled Aft
Title |
MA-1 Capsule Reassembled After Explosion |
Full Description |
The main objectives of Mercury Atlas-1's (MA-1) were to recover the capsule and test the integrity of the Mercury capsule structure and afterbody shingles. About one minute after liftoff MA-1 exploded and the remaining debris landed 7 miles off the Florida shore. The debris was collected and engineers attempted to reassemble MA-1 to determine the cause of the explosion. |
Date |
07/29/1960 |
NASA Center |
Johnson Space Center |
|
Project Mercury - AWT Gimbal
Title |
Project Mercury - AWT Gimbaling Rig |
Full Description |
The Gimbal Rig, formally known as the MASTIF of Multiple Axis Space Test Inertia Facility, was engineered to simulate the tumbling and rolling motions of a space capsule and train the Mercury astronauts to control roll, pitch and yaw by activating nitrogen jets, used as brakes and bring the vehicle back into control. This facility was built at the Lewis Research Center, now John H. Glenn Research Center at Lewis Field. |
Date |
10/29/1957 |
NASA Center |
Glenn Research Center |
|
Shepard Hoisted from Mercury
Title |
Shepard Hoisted from Mercury Capsule |
Full Description |
A U.S. Marine helicopter recovery team hoists astronaut Alan Shepard from his Mercury spacecraft after a successful flight and splashdown in the Atlantic Ocean. On May 5th 1961, Alan B. Shepard Jr. became the first American to fly into space. His Freedom 7 Mercury capsule flew a suborbital trajectory lasting 15 minutes 22 seconds. His spacecraft landed in the Atlantic Ocean where he and his capsule were recovered by helicopter and transported to the awaiting aircraft carrier U.S.S. Lake Champlain. |
Date |
07/20/1961 |
NASA Center |
Johnson Space Center |
|
Solar System Montage
Title |
Solar System Montage |
Full Description |
This is a montage of planetary images taken by spacecraft managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, CA. Included are (from top to bottom) images of Mercury, Venus, Earth (and Moon), Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. The spacecraft responsible for these images are as follows: the Mercury image was taken by Mariner 10, the Venus image by Magellan, the Earth image by Galileo, the Mars image by Viking, and the Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune images by Voyager. Pluto is not shown as no spacecraft has yet visited it. The inner planets (Mercury, Venus, Earth, Moon, and Mars) are roughly to scale to each other, the outer planets (Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune) are roughly to scale to each other. Actual diameters are given below: Sun 1,390,000 km Mercury 4,879 km Venus 12,104 km Earth 12,756 km Moon 3,475 km Mars 6,794 km Jupiter 142.984 km Saturn 120,536 km Uranus 51,118 km Neptune 49,528 km Pluto 2,390 km |
Date |
04/09/1999 |
NASA Center |
Jet Propulsion Laboratory |
|
View of Mercury Control Cent
Title |
View of Mercury Control Center prior to MA-8 flight |
Description |
View of Mercury Control Center prior to the Mercury-Atlas 8 (MA-8) flight of the Sigma 7. |
Date |
09.10.1962 |
|
MESSENGER Passes Mercury
Title |
MESSENGER Passes Mercury |
Explanation |
Two days ago, the MESSENGER spacecraft became only the second spacecraft in human history to swoop past Mercury. The last spacecraft to visit the Sun's closest planet was Mariner 10 [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mariner_10 ] over 35 years ago. Mariner 10 was not able to photograph Mercury [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap040912.html ]'s entire surface [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap030216.html ], and the images it did send back [ http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/photo_gallery/photogallery-mercury.html ] raised many questions. Therefore, much about planet Mercury [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercury_%28planet%29 ] remains unknown. This week's flyby of MESSENGER [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MESSENGER ] was only the first of three flybys. Over the next few years MESSENGER will swing past [ http://messenger.jhuapl.edu/the_mission/MESSENGERTimeline/TimeLine_content.html ] twice more and finally enter Mercury's orbit in 2011. MESSENGER is currently moving too fast to enter orbit around Mercury now. The above image [ http://messenger.jhuapl.edu/gallery/sciencePhotos/image.php?gallery_id=2&image_id=117 ] was taken two days ago during MESSENGER's flyby and shows part of Mercury's surface that has never been imaged [ http://www.planetary.org/blog/article/00001299/ ] in detail before. Many more detailed images of Mercury [ http://messenger.jhuapl.edu/gallery/sciencePhotos/index.php ] are expected to be sent back over the next few days. The data acquired by MESSENGER [ http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/messenger/main/index.html ] will hopefully help scientists better understand [ http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/messenger/main/Land_of_Confusion_f.html ] how Mercury's surface was formed, and why it is so dense. |
|
Mercury transit of the Sun
Title |
Mercury transit of the Sun |
Completed |
2003-05-07 |
|
Mercury transit of the Sun
Title |
Mercury transit of the Sun |
Completed |
2003-05-07 |
|
Mercury-Atlas 3 liftoff
Title |
Mercury-Atlas 3 liftoff |
Description |
A NASA project Mercury spacecraft was launched at 11:15 AM on April 25, 1961 from Cape Canaveral, Florida. The vehicle was destroyed by the Range Safety Officer about 40 seconds after liftoff. |
Date Taken |
1961-04-25 |
|
Mercury-Atlas 1 liftoff
Title |
Mercury-Atlas 1 liftoff |
Description |
Mercury-Atlas 1 liftoff from Cape Canaveral on July 29, 1960. |
Date Taken |
1961-03-09 |
|
Chimpanzee "Ham" during pref
Title |
Chimpanzee "Ham" during preflight activity prior to Mercury-Redstone 2 flight |
Description |
Chimpanzee "Ham" during preflight activity with one of his handlers prior to the Mercury-Redstone 2 test flight which was conducted on January 31, 1961. |
Date Taken |
1961-01-12 |
|
Mercury-Atlas 3 liftoff
Title |
Mercury-Atlas 3 liftoff |
Description |
View of the Mercury-Atlas 3 liftoff from Cape Canaveral on April 25, 1961. |
Date Taken |
1961-04-25 |
|
Launch of Mercury-Redstone v
Title |
Launch of Mercury-Redstone vehicle 2 on Jan. 21, 1961 |
Description |
Launch of the Mercury-Redstone 2 vehicle on Jan. 21, 1961. |
Date Taken |
1961-08-10 |
|
Astronaut Grissom dons space
Title |
Astronaut Grissom dons spacesuit for Mercury-Redstone 4 mission |
Description |
Portrait of Astronaut Virgil I. (Gus) Grissom in his pressure suit and wearing his helmet in Hanger S at Cape Canaveral, Florida before the Mercury-Redstone 4 mission. |
Date Taken |
1961-08-09 |
|
Mercury-Redstone 4 spacecraf
Title |
Mercury-Redstone 4 spacecraft in last moments of countdown before launch |
Description |
The Mercury-Redstone 4 spacecraft, on the pad at Cape Canaveral, Florida in its last moments of countdown before launch. Notice the personnel still gathered around the base of the rocket. |
Date Taken |
1961-08-09 |
|
Recovery of the Mercury-Atla
Title |
Recovery of the Mercury-Atlas 4 |
Description |
View of the recovery of Mercury-Atlas 4 spacecraft which was launched from Cape Canaveral on Sept. 13, 1961. |
Date Taken |
1961-09-13 |
|
Launch of the Mercury-Atlas
Title |
Launch of the Mercury-Atlas 4 |
Description |
View of the launch of Mercury-Atlas 4 spacecraft from Cape Canaveral on Sept. 13, 1961. |
Date Taken |
1961-09-13 |
|
Mercury-Redstone 4 spacecraf
Title |
Mercury-Redstone 4 spacecraft launching |
Description |
Wide angle view of the launching of Mercury-Redstone 4 spacecraft, from the pad at Cape Canaveral, Florida. The spacecraft is seen clearing the pad and heading into its suborbital mission. |
Date Taken |
1961-08-10 |
|
Launch of the Mercury-Atlas
Title |
Launch of the Mercury-Atlas 4 |
Description |
View of the launch of Mercury-Atlas 4 spacecraft from Cape Canaveral on Sept. 13, 1961. |
Date Taken |
1961-10-12 |
|
Mercury-Redstone 4 spacecraf
Title |
Mercury-Redstone 4 spacecraft launching |
Description |
Wide angle view of the Mercury-Redstone 4 spacecraft, on the pad at Cape Canaveral, Florida launching. |
Date Taken |
1961-08-10 |
|
Mercury capsule mock-up susp
Title |
Mercury capsule mock-up suspended from ship during water egress training |
Description |
A mock-up of the Mercury space capsule is held suspended above the water aboard the ship that is taking Astronauts Grissom and Glenn to their emergency water egress training. |
Date Taken |
1961-04-26 |
|
View of Astronaut John Glenn
Title |
View of Astronaut John Glenn insertion into the Mercury Spacecraft |
Description |
View of Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr. being inserted into the Mercury Spacecraft "Friendship 7" for the Mercury-Atlas 6 mission on launch day. |
Date Taken |
1962-02-20 |
|
Earth observations taken dur
Title |
Earth observations taken during the Mercury-Redstone 2 flight |
Description |
Earth observations taken during the Mercury-Redstone 2 flight. |
Date Taken |
1961-08-10 |
|
Earth observations taken dur
Title |
Earth observations taken during the Mercury-Redstone 2 flight |
Description |
Earth observations taken during the Mercury-Redstone 2 flight. |
Date Taken |
1961-08-10 |
|
Launch of the Mercury-Atlas
Title |
Launch of the Mercury-Atlas 6 mission |
Description |
Launch of the Mercury-Atlas 6 mission on Feb. 20, 1962. |
Date Taken |
1962-02-20 |
|
Launch of the Mercury-Atlas
Title |
Launch of the Mercury-Atlas 6 mission |
Description |
Launch of the Mercury-Atlas 6 mission on Feb. 20, 1962. |
Date Taken |
1962-02-20 |
|
Close-up view of Mercury-Atl
Title |
Close-up view of Mercury-Atlas 4 at Cape Canaveral |
Description |
Close-up view of the unmanned Mercury-Atlas 4 on the launch pad at Cape Canaveral, Florida. |
Date Taken |
1990-01-18 |
|
Earth observations taken dur
Title |
Earth observations taken during the Mercury-Redstone 2 flight |
Description |
Earth observations taken during the Mercury-Redstone 2 flight. |
Date Taken |
1961-08-10 |
|
Earth observation take durin
Title |
Earth observation take during the Mercury-Redstone 4 flight |
Description |
Earth observation take during the Mercury-Redstone 4 flight. |
Date Taken |
1961-03-17 |
|
View of Astronaut John Glenn
Title |
View of Astronaut John Glenn insertion into the Mercury Spacecraft |
Description |
View of Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr. being inserted into the Mercury Spacecraft "Friendship 7" for the Mercury-Atlas 6 mission. |
Date Taken |
1962-02-20 |
|
Earth observations from Merc
Title |
Earth observations from Mercury-Atlas 4 |
Description |
Earth observations of a shoreline taken from the Mercury-Atlas 4. |
Date Taken |
1962-05-17 |
|
Fisheye view of Astronaut Jo
Title |
Fisheye view of Astronaut John Glenn insertion into the Mercury Spacecraft |
Description |
Fisheye view of Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr. being inserted into the Mercury Spacecraft "Friendship 7" for the Mercury-Atlas 6 mission. |
Date Taken |
1962-02-20 |
|
Astronaut Scott Carpenter co
Title |
Astronaut Scott Carpenter completes water egress test |
Description |
Project Mercury Astronaut M. Scott Carpenter, prime pilot of the Mercury-Atlas 7, goes through a water egress test. He is in the Mercury pressure suit, without the helmet, and is wearing a life vest. |
Date Taken |
1962-04-18 |
|
Astronaut John Glenn poses i
Title |
Astronaut John Glenn poses in Mercury Space Suit |
Description |
Portrait view of Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr., pilot of the Mercury-Atlas 6 earth-orbital space flight, posing in his Mercury Space Suit with his helmet on and visor up. |
Date Taken |
1962-02-20 |
|
Astronaut John Glenn practic
Title |
Astronaut John Glenn practices insertion into Mercury spacecraft |
Description |
Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr., pilot of the Mercury-Atlas 6 mission, practices insertion into the Mercury "Friendship 7" spacecraft during MA-6 preflight training activity at Cape Canveral, Florida. He is wearing the full pressure suit and helmet (00993), Glenn practices insertion into Mercury capsule with help of a McDonnell Aircraft Corporation technician (00994). |
Date Taken |
1962-02-05 |
|
Astronaut John Glenn poses i
Title |
Astronaut John Glenn poses in Mercury Space Suit |
Description |
Full view of Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr., pilot of the Mercury-Atlas 6 earth-orbital space flight, posing in his Mercury Space Suit with his helmet on and visor down. |
Date Taken |
1962-02-20 |
|
Earth and sky views taken wi
Title |
Earth and sky views taken with hand-held camera during Mercury-Atlas 7 |
Description |
Earth and sky views taken with hand-held camera by Astronaut M. Scott Carpenter during Mercury-Atlas 7 mission. |
Date Taken |
1962-07-17 |
|
Earth and sky views taken wi
Title |
Earth and sky views taken with hand-held camera during Mercury-Atlas 7 |
Description |
Earth and sky views taken with hand-held camera by Astronaut M. Scott Carpenter during Mercury-Atlas 7 mission. |
Date Taken |
1962-07-17 |
|
Earth and sky views taken wi
Title |
Earth and sky views taken with hand-held camera during Mercury-Atlas 7 |
Description |
Earth and sky views taken with hand-held camera by Astronaut M. Scott Carpenter during Mercury-Atlas 7 mission. |
Date Taken |
1962-07-17 |
|
Launch of the Mercury-Atlas
Title |
Launch of the Mercury-Atlas 7 mission |
Description |
The Mercury-Atlas 7 (MA-7), carrying Astronaut M. Scott Carpenter, was launched by NASA from Pad 14, Cape Canaveral, Florida, on May 24, 1962. |
Date Taken |
1962-05-24 |
|
Earth and sky views taken wi
Title |
Earth and sky views taken with hand-held camera during Mercury-Atlas 7 |
Description |
Earth and sky views taken with hand-held camera by Astronaut M. Scott Carpenter during Mercury-Atlas 7 mission. |
Date Taken |
1962-07-17 |
|
Earth and sky views taken wi
Title |
Earth and sky views taken with hand-held camera during Mercury-Atlas 7 |
Description |
Earth and sky views taken with hand-held camera by Astronaut M. Scott Carpenter during Mercury-Atlas 7 mission. |
Date Taken |
1962-07-17 |
|
Landing of Mercury-Atlas 8 s
Title |
Landing of Mercury-Atlas 8 spacecraft with parachute extended |
Description |
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. |
Date Taken |
1962-10-11 |
|
Launch of the Mercury-Atlas
Title |
Launch of the Mercury-Atlas 8 mission |
Description |
Launch of the Mercury-Atlas 8 "Sigma 7" mission |
Date Taken |
1962-10-05 |
|
Launch of the Mercury-Atlas
Title |
Launch of the Mercury-Atlas 7 mission |
Description |
The Mercury-Atlas 7 (MA-7), carrying Astronaut M. Scott Carpenter, was launched by NASA from Pad 14, Cape Canaveral, Florida, on May 24, 1962. |
Date Taken |
1962-09-25 |
|
Landing of Mercury-Atlas 8 s
Title |
Landing of Mercury-Atlas 8 spacecraft with parachute extended |
Description |
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". |
Date Taken |
1963-11-25 |
|
Launch of the Mercury-Atlas
Title |
Launch of the Mercury-Atlas 8 mission |
Description |
Launch of the Mercury-Atlas 8 "Sigma 7" mission |
Date Taken |
1962-10-29 |
|
Mercury-Atlas 1 liftoff
Title |
Mercury-Atlas 1 liftoff |
Description |
Mercury-Atlas 1 liftoff from Cape Canaveral on July 29, 1960. |
Date Taken |
1963-12-31 |
|
Launch of the Mercury-Atlas
Title |
Launch of the Mercury-Atlas 5 |
Description |
View of the lift-off of Mercury-Atlas 5 carrying space chimp "Enos" on November 29, 1961 from Kennedy Space Center. |
Date Taken |
1962-11-29 |
|
View of Astronaut John Glenn
Title |
View of Astronaut John Glenn insertion into the Mercury Spacecraft |
Description |
View of Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr. being inserted into the Mercury Spacecraft "Friendship 7" for the Mercury-Atlas 6 mission on launch day. |
Date Taken |
1962-02-20 |
|
Mercury-Redstone 4 spacecraf
Title |
Mercury-Redstone 4 spacecraft launching |
Description |
The Mercury-Redstone 4 spacecraft, on the pad at Cape Canaveral, Florida is shown about to launch. Notice the smoke begining to be seen at the bottom of the rocket. |
Date Taken |
1961-06-21 |
|
Launching of Mercury-Atlas 9
Title |
Launching of Mercury-Atlas 9 |
Description |
Launching of Mercury-Atlas 9. |
Date Taken |
1963-05-16 |
|
Preparation for launch of Me
Title |
Preparation for launch of Mercury-Atlas 9 |
Description |
Preparation for launch of Mercury-Atlas 9. |
Date Taken |
1963-05-16 |
|
Chimpanzee "Ham" during pref
Title |
Chimpanzee "Ham" during preflight activity prior to Mercury-Redstone 2 flight |
Description |
Chimpanzee "Ham" during preflight activity with one of his handlers prior to the Mercury-Redstone 2 test flight which was conducted on January 31, 1961. |
Date Taken |
1963-11-05 |
|
Chimpanzee "Ham" during pref
Title |
Chimpanzee "Ham" during preflight activity prior to Mercury-Redstone 2 flight |
Description |
Chimpanzee "Ham" being assisted into "space suit" prior to the Mercury-Redstone 2 test flight which was conducted on January 31, 1961. |
Date Taken |
1963-11-05 |
|
Double Ring Craters
PIA02936
Sol (our sun)
Imaging Science Subsystem -
Title |
Double Ring Craters |
Original Caption Released with Image |
A faint double ring crater is seen at upper right in this picture of Mercury (FDS 166601) taken one hour and 40 minutes before Mariner 10's second rendezvous with the planet September 21. Located 35 degrees S. Lat. The outer ring is 170 kilometers (10 miles) across. Double ring craters are common features on Mercury. This particular feature and the bright rayed crater to its left were seen from a different viewing angle in pictures taken by Mariner 10 during its first Mercury flyby last March 29. 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 Credit: NASA/JPL/Northwestern University |
|
Mercury's South Pole
PIA02941
Sol (our sun)
Imaging Science Subsystem -
Title |
Mercury's South Pole |
Original Caption Released with Image |
Mercury's south pole was photographed by one of Mariner 10's TV cameras as the spacecraft made its second close flyby of the planet September 21. The pole is located inside the large crater (180 kilometers, 110 miles) on Mercury's limb (lower center). The crater floor is shadowed and its far rim, illuminated by the sun, appears to de disconnected from the edge of the planet. Just above and to the right of the South Pole is a double ring basin about 100 kilometers (125 miles) in diameter. A bright ray system, splashed out of a 50 kilometer (30 mile) crater is seen at upper right. The stripe across the top is an artifact introduced during computer processing. The picture (FDS 166902) was taken from a distance of 85,800 kilometers (53,200 miles) less than two hours after Mariner 10 reached its closest point to the planet. 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 Credit: NASA/JPL/Northwestern University |
|
Field of Bright Rays
PIA02938
Sol (our sun)
Imaging Science Subsystem -
Title |
Field of Bright Rays |
Original Caption Released with Image |
A field of bright rays--created by ejecta from a crater--radiating to the north (top) from off camera (lower right) is seen in this view of Mercury taken September 21 by Mariner 10. Source of the rays is a large new crater to the south, near Mercury's South Pole. Mariner 10 was about 48,000 kilometers (30,000 miles) from Mercury when the picture (FDS 166749) was taken at 2:01 p.m. PDT, just three minutes after the spacecraft was closest to the planet. Largest crater in this picture is 100 kilometers (62 miles) in diameter. 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 Credit: NASA/JPL/Northwestern University |
|
Lineated Terrain
PIA02428
Sol (our sun)
Imaging Science Subsystem -
Title |
Lineated Terrain |
Original Caption Released with Image |
Lineated terrain not clearly related to any crater or basin. Widest valleys are 10 km across. Area centered at 8 degrees S, 148 degrees W. This image (FDS 246) 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 Credit: NASA/JPL/Northwestern University |
|
Terraced Craters
PIA02420
Sol (our sun)
Imaging Science Subsystem -
Title |
Terraced Craters |
Original Caption Released with Image |
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 Credit: NASA/JPL/Northwestern University |
|
Interior Peaks and Hilly Flo
PIA02419
Sol (our sun)
Imaging Science Subsystem -
Title |
Interior Peaks and Hilly Floored Crater |
Original Caption Released with Image |
This crater (74 km diameter) just north of the Caloris Planitia displays interior and central peaks rising up from a hilly floor. The continuous ejecta deposits and secondary crater field are well defined. This image(FDS 79) 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 Credit: NASA/JPL/Northwestern University |
|
Crater Chain Groves Inside L
PIA02423
Sol (our sun)
Imaging Science Subsystem -
Title |
Crater Chain Groves Inside Larger Craters |
Original Caption Released with Image |
The craters in this image (128 km diameter and 195 km diameter) have interior rings of mountains and ejecta deposits which are scarred by deep secondary crater chain groves. This image (FDS 150)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 Credit: NASA/JPL/Northwestern University |
|
Northeastern Quadrant of the
PIA02427
Sol (our sun)
Imaging Science Subsystem -
Title |
Northeastern Quadrant of the Caloris Basin |
Original Caption Released with Image |
This image of the northeastern quadrant of the Caloris basin shows the smooth hills and domes between the inner and outer scarps and the well-developed radial system east of the outer scarp. This image (FDS 193) 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 Credit: NASA/JPL/Northwestern University |
|
Prominent Rayed Craters
PIA02429
Sol (our sun)
Imaging Science Subsystem -
Title |
Prominent Rayed Craters |
Original Caption Released with Image |
These two prominent rayed craters are located at 40 degrees N, 124 degrees W. Bright halos extend as far as 2 crater diameters beyond crater rims. Individual rays extend from halo. Bright streak extending from middle top to lower is unrelated to the two craters. Craters are 40 km in diameter. This image (FDS 275) 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 Credit: NASA/JPL/Northwestern University |
|
General Description |
B60-285 (1960) --- Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr., pilot of the Mercury Atlas 6 space flight, emerges from an Egress trainer during training activity at the Langley Research Center. He is attempting to transfer onto a life raft from the mockup of the Mercury capsule. |
|
Astronaut Alan B. Shepard
Name of Image |
Astronaut Alan B. Shepard |
Date of Image |
1963-09-09 |
Full Description |
Astronaut Alan B. Shepard, one of the original seven astronauts for Mercury Project selected by NASA on April 27, 1959. The Freedom 7 spacecraft boosted by Mercury-Redstone vehicle for the MR-3 mission made the first marned suborbital flight and Astronaut Shepard became the first American in space. |
|
Astronaut Virgil I. Grissom
Name of Image |
Astronaut Virgil I. Grissom |
Date of Image |
1959-04-27 |
Full Description |
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 suborbital flight. The capsule, Liberty Bell 7, sank into the sea after the splashdown. |
|
Astronaut John Glenn Enters
Name of Image |
Astronaut John Glenn Enters Friendship 7 |
Date of Image |
1962-02-20 |
Full Description |
Astronaut John Glenn enters the Mercury spacecraft, Friendship 7, prior to the launch of MA-6 on February 20, 1961 and became the first American who orbited the Earth. The MA-6 mission was the first manned orbital flight boosted by the Mercury-Atlas vehicle, a modified Atlas ICBM (Intercontinental Ballistic Missile), lasted for five hours, and orbited the Earth three times. |
|
Redstone Test Stand
Name of Image |
Redstone Test Stand |
Date of Image |
1950-01-01 |
Full Description |
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 test firings on the Redstone rocket, over 200 on the Mercury-Redstone vehicle configuration alone. It was this configuration which launched America's first two marned space missions, Freedom 7 and Liberty Bell 7,in 1961. |
|
MR-BD Lift Off
Name of Image |
MR-BD Lift Off |
Date of Image |
1961-03-24 |
Full Description |
The Mercury-Redstone Booster Development vehicle (MR-BD) lifts off from Cape Canaveral March 24, 1961. This test flight evaluated changes incorporated in the booster designed to reduce vehicle oscillations and vibrations. The Mercury-Redstone launch vehicle was developed by Dr. Wernher von Braun and the rocket team in Huntsville, Alabama. |
|
Astronaut John Glenn Enters
Name of Image |
Astronaut John Glenn Enters Friendship 7 |
Date of Image |
1962-02-20 |
Full Description |
Astronaut John Glenn enters the Mercury spacecraft, Friendship 7, prior to the launch of MA-6 on February 20, 1961 and became the first American who orbited the Earth. The MA-6 mission was the first manned orbital flight boosted by the Mercury-Atlas vehicle, a modified Atlas ICBM (Intercontinental Ballistic Missile), lasted for five hours, and orbited the Earth three times. |
|
MR-4 (Mercury-Redstone) Laun
Name of Image |
MR-4 (Mercury-Redstone) Launch |
Date of Image |
1961-07-21 |
Full Description |
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 a duration of 15-1/2 minutes. |
|
The Recovery Operation of th
Name of Image |
The Recovery Operation of the Faith 7 |
Date of Image |
1963-05-16 |
Full Description |
The recovery operation of the Faith 7 spacecraft after the completion of the 1-1/2 day orbital flight (MA-9 mission) with Astronaut Gordon Cooper. Navy frogmen attach the flotation collar to the spacecraft. The MA-9 mission was the last flight of the Mercury Project and launched on May 15, 1963 boosted by The Mercury-Atlas launch vehicle. |
|
Shepard Awaits Liftoff
Name of Image |
Shepard Awaits Liftoff |
Date of Image |
1961-05-05 |
Full Description |
Astronaut Alan B. Shepard, Jr. awaits liftoff in the Freedom 7 Mercury spacecraft on May 5, 1961. This third flight of the Mercury-Redstone (MR-3) vehicle, developed by D. Wernher von Braun and the rocket team in Huntsville, Alabama, was the first marned space mission for the United States. During the 15-minute suborbital flight, Shepard reached an altitude of 115 miles and traveled 302 miles downrange. |
|
Shepard Lift Off
Name of Image |
Shepard Lift Off |
Date of Image |
1961-05-05 |
Full Description |
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 Huntsille, Alabama, was the first marned space mission for the United States. During the 15-minute suborbital flight, Shepard reached an altitude of 115 miles and traveled 302 miles downrange. |
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The Launch of Mercury-Redsto
Name of Image |
The Launch of Mercury-Redstone |
Date of Image |
1961-05-05 |
Full Description |
The launch of the Mercury-Redstone (MR-3), Freedom 7. MR-3 placed the first American astronaut, Alan Shepard, in suborbit on May 5, 1961. |
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Mercury's Transit: An Unusua
Title |
Mercury's Transit: An Unusual Spot on the Sun |
Explanation |
What's that dot on the Sun? [ http://www.davidcortner.com/astro/mtransit/ ] If you look closely, it is almost perfectly round. The dot is the result of an unusual type of solar eclipse [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap060404.html ] that occurred last week. Usually it is the Earth's Moon [ http://www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link=/earth/ moons_and_rings.html ] that eclipses the Sun. Last week, for the first time in over three years, the planet Mercury [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercury_%28mythology%29 ] took a turn. Like the approach to New Moon before a solar eclipse [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap040926.html ], the phase of Mercury became a continually thinner crescent [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap061030.html ] as the planet progressed toward an alignment with the Sun. Eventually the phase of Mercury dropped [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap040606.html ] to zero and the dark spot of Mercury crossed our parent star. The situation could technically be labeled a Mercurian annular eclipse [ http://www.mreclipse.com/Special/SEprimer.html ] with an extraordinarily large ring of fire [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap020610.html ]. From above the cratered planes [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap040912.html ] of the night side of Mercury, the Earth appeared in its fullest phase. Hours later, as Mercury continued in its orbit, a slight crescent phase appeared again. The next Mercurian solar eclipse [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ Transit_of_Mercury_from_Earth ] will occur in 2016. |
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Mercury on the Horizon
Title |
Mercury on the Horizon |
Explanation |
Have you ever seen the planet Mercury? Because Mercury [ http://www.seds.org/nineplanets/nineplanets/ mercury.html ] orbits so close to the Sun, it never wanders far from the Sun in Earth's sky [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap020509.html ]. If trailing the Sun, Mercury [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/mercury.html ] will be visible low on the horizon for only a short while after sunset [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap020510.html ]. If leading the Sun, Mercury will be visible only shortly before sunrise. So at certain times of the year an informed skygazer [ http://skyandtelescope.com/observing/ataglance/ article_110_1.asp ] with a little determination can usually pick Mercury out from a site with an unobscured horizon. Above, a lot of determination has been combined with a little digital trickery [ http://www.astropix.com/HTML/J_DIGIT/ ETHICS.HTM ] to show Mercury's successive positions during March of 2000. Each picture was taken from the same location in Spain when the Sun itself was 10 degrees below the horizon [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap970909.html ] and superposed on the single most photogenic sunset [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap980526.html ]. By the middle of this month, Mercury will again be well placed for viewing above the western horizon at sunset, but by the end of April it will have faded and dropped into the twilight. On May 7th, Mercury will cross [ http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse/OH/transit03.html ] the Sun's disk. |
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NASA Destination Tomorrow -
NASA Destination Tomorrow Se
6/1/03
Description |
NASA Destination Tomorrow Segment describing how Dr. Maxime Faget's space capsule design helped launch the United States into the Space Age. |
Date |
6/1/03 |
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NASA Destination Tomorrow -
NASA Destination Tomorrow Vi
6/1/03
Description |
NASA Destination Tomorrow Video containing five segments as described below. NASA Destination Tomorrow Segment describing NASA's Child Safety Alert System for automobiles. NASA Destination Tomorrow Segment explaining how NASA uses flight simulators to ass |
Date |
6/1/03 |
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NASA Destination Tomorrow -
NASA Destination Tomorrow Se
6/1/03
Description |
NASA Destination Tomorrow Segment exploring the history of the Gemini project that was instrumental in getting man to the moon. |
Date |
6/1/03 |
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Cooper and Faith 7 Recovery
Title |
Cooper and Faith 7 Recovery |
Full Description |
Navy Divers install a stabilizing flotation collar around Gordon Cooper's Mercury space capsule nicknamed "Faith 7 shortly after splashdown. |
Date |
05/16/1963 |
NASA Center |
Johnson Space Center |
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Freedom 7 and Shepard In fli
Title |
Freedom 7 and Shepard In flight |
Full Description |
Astronaut Alan Shepard photographed in flight by a 16mm movie camera inside the Freedom 7 spacecraft. Shepard is just about to raise the shield in front of his face during descent after opening of the main parachute. |
Date |
5/5/1961 |
NASA Center |
Kennedy Space Center |
|
Ham
Title |
Ham |
Full Description |
Ham, the first chimpanzee ever to ride into space is shown off by his animal trainer at Cape Canaveral, Florida. |
Date |
1/31/1961 |
NASA Center |
Kennedy Space Center |
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Launch of Friendship 7
Title |
Launch of Friendship 7 |
Full Description |
Launch of Friendship 7, the first American manned orbital space flight. Astronaut John Glenn aboard, the Mercury-Atlas rocket is launched from Pad 14. |
Date |
2/20/1962 |
NASA Center |
Kennedy Space Center |
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Mercury astronauts survival
Title |
Mercury astronauts survival training |
Full Description |
The seven original Mercury astronauts participate in U.S. Air Force survival school at Stead Air Force Base in Nevada. Picture from left to right are L. Gordon Cooper, Jr., M. Scott Carpenter, John H. Glenn, Jr., Alan Shepard, Virgil I. Grissom, Walter M. Schirra, Jr., and Donald K. Slayton. Portions of their clothing have been fashioned from parachute material, and all have grown beards from their time in the wilderness. The purpose of this training was to prepare astronauts in the event of an emergency or faulty landing in a remote area. |
Date |
1960 |
NASA Center |
Johnson Space Center |
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Sam the Monkey After His Rid
Title |
Sam the Monkey After His Ride in the Little Joe 2 Spacecraft |
Full Description |
Sam, the Rhesus monkey, after his ride in the Little Joe-2 (LJ-2) spacecraft. A U.S. Navy destroyer safely recovered Sam after he experienced three minutes of weightlessness during the flight. Animals were often used during test flights for Project Mercury to help determine the effects of spaceflight and weightlessness on humans. LJ-2 was one in a series of flights that led up to the human orbital flights of NASA's Project Mercury program. The Little Joe rocket booster was developed as a cheaper, smaller, and more functional alternative to the Redstone rockets. Little Joe could be produced at one-fifth the cost of Redstone rockets and still have enough power to carry a capsule payload. Seven unmanned Little Joe rockets were launched from Wallops Island, Virginia from August 1959 to April 1961. |
Date |
12/04/1959 |
NASA Center |
Johnson Space Center |
|
Glenn at the Cape
Title |
Glenn at the Cape |
Full Description |
Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr. in his silver Mercury spacesuit during pre- flight training activities at Cape Canaveral. On February 20, 1962 Glenn lifted off into space aboard his Mercury Atlas (MA-6) rocket and became the first American to orbit the Earth. After orbiting the Earth 3 times, Friendship 7 landed in the Atlantic Ocean 4 hours, 55 minutes and 23 seconds later, just East of Grand Turk Island in the Bahamas. Glenn and his capsule were recovered by the Navy Destroyer Noa, 21 minutes after splashdown. |
Date |
02/27/1964 |
NASA Center |
Johnson Space Center |
|
The Mercury Seven Astronauts
Title |
The Mercury Seven Astronauts |
Full Description |
The Original Mercury Seven astronauts with a U.S. Air Force F-106B jet aircraft. From left to right: M. Scott Carpenter, Leroy Gordon Cooper, John H. Glenn, Jr., Virgil I. Gus Grissom, Jr., Walter M. Wally Schirra, Jr., Alan B. Shepard, Jr., Donald K. Deke Slayton. |
Date |
01/20/1971 |
NASA Center |
Langley Research Center |
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John Glenn With T.J. O'Malle
Title |
John Glenn With T.J. O'Malley and Paul Donnelly in Front of |
Full Description |
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. |
Date |
01/24/1962 |
NASA Center |
Kennedy Space Center |
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Little Joe 5B High-Q-Abort T
Title |
Little Joe 5B High-Q-Abort Test |
Full Description |
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 developed as a cheaper, smaller, and more functional alternative to the Redstone rockets. Little Joe could be produced at one-fifth the cost of Redstone rockets and still have enough power to carry a capsule payload. Seven unmanned Little Joe rockets were launched at Wallops Island, Virginia, from August 1959 to April 1961. |
Date |
04/28/1961 |
NASA Center |
Headquarters |
|
5/5/61
Forty-seven years ago today,
5/5/08
Description |
Forty-seven years ago today, astronaut Alan Shepard became the first American in space. He launched aboard his Mercury-Redstone 3, named Freedom 7, to make an historic 15-minute suborbital flight. This image shows Shepard in capsule before launch. After several delays and more than four hours in the capsule, Shepard was ready to go, and he famously urged mission controllers to 'fix your little problem and light this candle.' Image Credit: NASA |
Date |
5/5/08 |
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Light the Candle
Astronaut Alan Shepard is hu
10/23/08
Description |
Astronaut Alan Shepard is hurled into space atop a Mercury-Redstone rocket. Freedom 7 was the first American manned suborbital space flight, making Shepard the first American in space He later commanded the Apollo 14 mission, and was the fifth person to walk on the moon. Image Credit: NASA |
Date |
10/23/08 |
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Shepard Completes His Missio
On May 5, 1961, NASA astrona
5/5/09
Description |
On May 5, 1961, NASA astronaut Alan Shepard piloted his Freedom 7 Mercury capsule in a 15-minute suborbital flight, becoming America's first astronaut. In this image, he is shown being hoisted aboard a U.S. Marine helicopter after splashdown. The flight carried him to an altitude of 116 statute miles. Image Credit: NASA |
Date |
5/5/09 |
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High Resolution View of Merc
PIA02416
Sol (our sun)
Imaging Science Subsystem -
Title |
High Resolution View of Mercury |
Original Caption Released with Image |
A limping Mariner 10 spacecraft was coaxed into a third and final encounter with Mercury in March of 1975. Due to several problems with the aging spacecraft, only ~450 useful images of the planet were acquired, though many are at significantly higher resolution than previous encounters. This is one of the highest resolution images of Mercury acquired by Mariner 10: Frame 528922, ~90 m/pixel. The vertical (tall narrow) format of the third encounter images resulted from problems with the tape recorder and transmitter on the spacecraft. Only the middle quarter of each frame could be sent back. 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 Credit: NASA/JPL/Northwestern University |
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Heavily Cratered Terrain and
PIA02438
Sol (our sun)
Imaging Science Subsystem -
Title |
Heavily Cratered Terrain and Smooth Plain |
Original Caption Released with Image |
This photograph of Mercury was taken by the Mariner 10 spacecraft from a range of 34,860 miles (55,340 kilometers) during the first Mercury encounter on March 29, 1974. It shows an area in the northern hemisphere in the general area of photography to be obtained during the third encounter, Sunday, March 16, 1975. Seen in the photograph is a transition from heavily cratered terrain to a smooth plain. These smooth plains areas on Mercury are thought to be volcanic in origin with lava flows filling in heavily cratered areas. The photograph area is about 308 miles (490 kilometers) wide. (FDS 156) 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 Credit: NASA/JPL/Northwestern University |
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Mercury's Southern Hemispher
PIA03101
Sol (our sun)
Imaging Science Subsystem -
Title |
Mercury's Southern Hemisphere |
Original Caption Released with Image |
Mercury: Computer Photomosaic of the Southern Hemisphere The Image Processing Lab at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory produced this photomosaic using computer software and techniques developed for use in processing planetary data. The Mariner 10 spacecraft imaged the region during its initial flyby of the planet. The Mariner 10 spacecraft was launched in 1974. The spacecraft took images of Venus in February 1974 on the way to three encounters with Mercury in March and September 1974 and March 1975. The spacecraft took more than 7,000 images of Mercury, Venus, the Earth and the Moon during its mission. The Mariner 10 Mission was managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory for NASA's Office of Space Science in Washington, D.C. |
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Mercury astronauts standing
Title |
Mercury astronauts standing beside a Convair 106-B aircraft |
Description |
Photo of the Mercury astronauts standing beside a Convair 106-B aircraft. They are, left to right, M. Scott Carpenter, L. Gordon Cooper Jr., John H. Glenn Jr., Virgil I. Grissom, Walter M. Schirra Jr., Alan B. Shepard Jr., and Donald K. Slayton. |
Date Taken |
1961-01-20 |
|
Astronaut Virgil Grissom in
Title |
Astronaut Virgil Grissom in new Mercury Space Suit during egress training |
Description |
Astronaut Virgil I. (Gus) Grissom, wearing the new Mercury Space Suit, poses for picture during emergency egress training activities at the Florida space center. He is seen standing in front of a mock-up of the Mercury capsule. |
Date Taken |
1961-04-26 |
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Mercury-Redstone Booster Dev
Title |
Mercury-Redstone Booster Development launch |
Description |
Redstone launch vehicle carrying a boilerplate model of the project Mercury spacecraft launched at 12:30 on March 24, 1961 from Cape Canaveral, Florida. |
Date Taken |
1961-03-24 |
|
Astronaut L. Gordon Cooper p
Title |
Astronaut L. Gordon Cooper participates in Mercury water egress training |
Description |
Astronaut L. Gordon Cooper participates in Mercury water egress training. He is wearing a snorkel and holding a camera for underwater photography. |
Date Taken |
1962-09-12 |
|
Recovery operations for the
Title |
Recovery operations for the Mercury-Atlas 8 mission |
Description |
Aerial view of the U.S.S. Kearsarge, recovery ship for the Mercury-Atlas 8 mission (09048), Life boat approaching the floating Sigma 7 capsule (09049), Aerial view of the Sigma 7 capsule being lowered to the deck of the Carrier U.S.S. Kearsarge (09050). |
Date Taken |
1962-12-18 |
|
Recovery operations for the
Title |
Recovery operations for the Mercury-Atlas 8 mission |
Description |
Aerial view of the U.S.S. Kearsarge, recovery ship for the Mercury-Atlas 8 mission (09048), Life boat approaching the floating Sigma 7 capsule (09049), Aerial view of the Sigma 7 capsule being lowered to the deck of the Carrier U.S.S. Kearsarge (09050). |
Date Taken |
1962-12-18 |
|
Illustration of relative siz
Title |
Illustration of relative sizes of Mercury, Gemini and Apollo spacecraft |
Description |
Artist concept illustrating the relative sizes of the one-man Mercury spacecraft, the two-man Gemini spacecraft, and the three-man Apollo spacecraft. |
Date Taken |
1987-01-09 |
|
Artist concept of Mercury pr
Title |
Artist concept of Mercury program study of medical effects and technology |
Description |
Artist concept of Mercury program study of medical effects and technology development. Drawing depicts cut-away view of Mercury capsule orbiting the Earth, showing the astronaut and his capsule's hardware. |
Date Taken |
1964-02-11 |
|
Illustration of relative siz
Title |
Illustration of relative sizes of Mercury, Gemini and Apollo spacecraft |
Description |
Artist concept illustrating the relative sizes of the one-man Mercury spacecraft, the two-man Gemini spacecraft, and the three-man Apollo spacecraft. Also shows line drawing of launch vehichles to show their relative size in relation to each other. |
Date Taken |
1987-01-09 |
|
Momument at Pad 14 honoring
Title |
Momument at Pad 14 honoring Project Mercury |
Description |
Momument at Pad 14 honoring Project Mercury. The Arabic number 7 represents the seven original astronauts. The other figure is the astronomical symbol of the Planet Mercury. In background is the Gemini 12 Agena Target Docking Vehicle atop its Atlas launch vehicle at Cape Kennedy, Florida. |
Date Taken |
1966-11-09 |
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