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| Gemini | Apollo | Skylab |
The Mercury Project was Americas first manned space program.
The capsule was small and the flights were short, but the
historical importance of this program can't be denied.
On May 5, 1961 Alan B. Shepard was launched on a sub-orbital
flight that lasted a little over fifteen minutes. He was
Americas first man in space.
By the end of 1963 all but one of the original seven
astronauts had been launched into space. The Mercury program
ended successfully, although the United States was still
behind in the space race with Russia.
Main Objectives
- Send a man into orbit around the Earth
- Study the effects of being in space
- Return safely to Earth
Sub-Orbital Missions
- Freedom 7 (MR-3)
May 5, 1961
Alan Shepard
- Liberty Bell 7 (MR-4)
Jul 21, 1961
Virgil "Gus" Grissom
Orbital Missions
- Friendship 7 (MA-6)
Feb 20, 1962
John Glenn
- Aurora 7 (MA-7)
May 24, 1962
Scott Carpenter
- Sigma 7 (MA-8)
Oct 3, 1962
Walter Schirra
- Faith 7 (MA-9)
May 15-16, 1963
L. Gordon Cooper
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