50 YA: America Chooses its First Astronaut to Fly

The Mercury 7.

The American citizenry were kept in the dark about who would be chosen to fly on the first Mercury flight. Seven astronauts had been preparing for years for this moment, but only one could fly first. Of course, there would be more flights than one and NASA management had to consider which pilot would be suited for which mission. The first mission was considered very dangerous by the very nature of being first to put a man in the Mercury capsule.

Glenn, Grissom and Shepard pose at LC-5.

By May, NASA had selected three astronauts for the first three flights. John Glenn was a Marine test pilot who had broken transcontinental speed records across the USA. Gus Grissom was from the US Air Force and test flew jets as well. Alan Shepard was a Navy carrier pilot who graduated to test flight and tested many of the navy's carrier jest in the 1950's. Both Glenn and Grissom had fought as combat pilots during the Korean War. Grissom flew 100 combat missions during the war. Glenn was a decorated war hero. During WW2 he flew against the Japanese in over 57 combat missions. During the Korean War he flew 100 combat missions and eventually shot down 3 enemy MiG jets.

Shepard in spacesuit.

On May 2nd, America had its answer: Alan Shepard would fly Freedom 7, the name he chose for the capsule he would ride into space. The discovery came during a now all-too-familiar problem: a launch delay. The rocket was ready to fly, and attempt was made on May 2nd. Unfortunately, bad weather closed in on the Cape and the mission was scrubbed. The next try would be May 5th.

The rocket is readied...

Readied, but it's a No-go. Flight delayed. Picture before the storm.

50 YA: Preparing for Freedom 7

Redstone rocket with Mercury capsule at pad 6.

Fifty years ago, space enthusiasts across America were on pins and needles waiting for the first US astronaut to fly into space. We had been stunned by the record-setting firsts made by the Soviet space program, and our reputation as a technological leader was in jeopardy. Then on April 12, 1961 the Soviets shocked the world with the launch of the first human in space, Yuri Gagarin. Meanwhile, NASA stumbled with problems in the control systems and finalizing safety equipment.

Finally it was time.

Evolution of the man-rated Redstone.

NASA prepared for the launch of it's first manned flight. The Redstone rocket at Launch Complex 5 was prepared with Mercury spacecraft #7 perched on top. The Redstone would not have enough thrust to propel the capsule into orbit around the Earth. We would need the Atlas rocket for that, but it was not ready. This flight was therefore planned as a sub-orbital mission, to send a man into space, and recover the spacecraft and astronaut in the Atlantic Ocean. US Naval vessels spread out into the downrange recovery area, awaiting the launch.

But who would ride the first rocket?

STS-134 Launch Delayed

Endeavor on Pad 39A.

By now you may have heard that the launch of mission STS-134 has been delayed. The culprit appears to be a faulty heater in the aft avionics section of the orbiter. NASA engineers now plan to replace Load Control Assembly-2 this week in order to prepare the shuttle for another opportunity to launch.

Technician begins repairs.

The picture above gives a clear view of one of the aft sections near the engines on the orbiter. You can clearly see the large pipes which bring in fuel from the External Tank (ET) to be ignited in the main engines. Heaters in the section control the temperature of the freezing-cold liquid fuel.

Endeavor is scheduled now for a flight no earlier than May 10. The mission to ISS is purposed to deliver the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer-2, the Express Logistics carrier with supplies, and spare parts for the Dextre robotic helper.

Progress 42 Docks at ISS

Steady, steady... stand by for docking...

Russian mission controllers did their best to get a supply spacecraft in to the ISS before the shuttle arrived at the station. Six hours before the STS-134 was supposed to launch (and didn't!), the remote-controlled Progress 42 spacecraft docked successfully with the station. Cargo on this trip includes propellant, oxygen, water, over a ton of maintenance equipment, and supplies. The craft blasted off from Kazakhstan on Wednesday.

Endeavor Launch Delayed

Pilot Greg Johnson in Shuttle Training Jet.

Back to the simulators. Endeavor was all set for launching on Friday, with tremendous crowds on hand to observe this last flight of this orbiter on mission STS-134. Alas, it was not meant to be. A heater problem in Auxiliary Power Unit 1 (APU-1) is under investigation as the culprit for the delay. As of this posting, the problem is not resolved, but a decision is expected Sunday morning on whether there will be a launch attempt Monday.

President Obama boarding Air Force One.

Also there to watch the flight of Endeavor was POTUS (President of the United States) Obama. Well, at least I know that he has now experienced what I've experienced every time I went to Kennedy Space Center to watch a launch: Frustration at a launch delay.

Lightning at the pad Thursday night.

It just so happened that Thursday night I was teaching class on Space Exploration Merit Badge at the Space Center. During the class I activated NASA TV on the main screen in the room, and lo and behold there was a tremendous lightning storm in progress. The boys in the class were duly impressed as bolt after bolt lit up the night scene and illustrated my impromptu lesson on the launch tower lightning rods! I usually don't get such a coincidental opportunity!

50 YA: A Volley of Rockets

Argo D-4 Javelin Sounding Rocket.

Fifty years ago, NASAexperienced a very busy week as experiments were launched into the atmosphere, into space, and testing the first American space capsule. On April 27th, 1961, NASA launched a Javelin rocket under direction of the Goddard Space Flight Center. Its scientific payload was used to collect information about the density of electrons in the ionosphere, one of the highest levels of our atmosphere. I haven't been able to identify where the rocket was launched from.

Juno-2 Rocket.

I do know that the Explorer XI space probe was successfully launched from Cape Canaveral on the 28th. Lofted into orbit by the Juno-2 rocket, the probe was the first satellite designed to detect gamma rays coming from the farthest reaches of space.

Little Joe 5-b

Mercury spacecraft 14A was blasted from Wallops Island on the same day. This unmanned test of the Mercury space capsule gave NASA another practice round of launching and recovering the capsule. It seems to have been a perfect test, providing much needed data in preparation for launching our first astronaut into space. The capsule splashed down 9 miles from Wallops Station and was successfully recovered. It is currently displayed at the Virginia Air and Space Center.

Future design studies continued ini preparation for other Air Force and NASA programs. On the 28th, NASA engineers turned in their final report on using the Saturn booster (then under development) to theoretically launch the proposed Dyna-Soar space plane. The Dyna-Soar was under theoretical testing and in the design stage to be used as a reusable space glider for the Air Force.

Artist impression of a Dyna-Soar launch on a Titan booster.

STS 134 crew arrives at Kennedy for launch

T-38s line up after landing.

The crew of space shuttle mission STS-134 arrived at the Kennedy SPace Center today, flying in their NASA T-38 jet trainers which they use for rapid transit and flight practice.

Commander Mark Kelly disembarks.

The crew got together for press pictures and to make some comments. Commander Kelly's wife, Gabriella Giffords, will be on site Friday to watch the launch. She is recovering from an assassination attempt several months ago, when she and a half-dozen others were shot while she greeted her constituents at a shopping mall in Arizona. Giffords is a member of the US House of Representatives. Her recovery from a bullet in the head is a medical miracle.

Just smile and wave, Boys...

Once the conference was over the astronauts headed to the space center to begin preparations for Friday's launch, scheduled now for 1:47 pm MDT. Commander Kelly and pilot Greg Johnson were scheduled to practice flying the Shuttle Training Aircraft this afternoon, in preparation for landing the shuttle when the mission is over.