Forty years ago today (May 5, 1961 [
http://www.thespace…mercury03.html ]), at the dawn of the space age [
http://www.hq.nasa.…index.html ], NASA controllers "lit the candle" and sent Alan Shepard arcing into space atop a Redstone rocket [
http://antwrp.gsfc.…]. The picture shows the pressure-suited Shepard before launch in his cramped space capsule [
http://www.hq.nasa.…mercury.html ] dubbed "Freedom 7" [
http://images.jsc.n…10073523.htm ]. Broadcast live to a global television audience, the flight of Freedom 7 [
http://www.nasm.edu…] - the first space flight by an American - followed less than a month after the first human venture into space by Soviet Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin [
http://antwrp.gsfc.…]. Freedom 7's historic flight [
http://www.hq.nasa.…intro.htm ] was suborbital, lasting only about 15 minutes, but during it Shepard demonstrated manual control of his capsule. Naval aviator [
http://www.hq.nasa.…shepard.htm ] Shepard was chosen as one of the original seven Mercury Program [
http://www.hq.nasa.…toc.htm ] astronauts. He considered this first flight [
http://www.hq.nasa.…] the greatest challenge and actively sought the assignment. Shepard's career as an astronaut spanned a remarkable period in human achievement and in 1971 he walked on the moon [
http://www.hq.nasa.…a14.crew.html ] as commander of the Apollo 14 mission. A true pioneer and intrepid explorer, Alan Shepard died in 1998 [
http://www.nasa.gov…] at age 74.
Explanation
Forty years ago today (May 5, 1961 [
http://www.thespace…mercury03.html ]), at the dawn of the space age [
http://www.hq.nasa.…index.html ], NASA controllers "lit the candle" and sent Alan Shepard arcing into space atop a Redstone rocket [
http://antwrp.gsfc.…]. The picture shows the pressure-suited Shepard before launch in his cramped space capsule [
http://www.hq.nasa.…mercury.html ] dubbed "Freedom 7" [
http://images.jsc.n…10073523.htm ]. Broadcast live to a global television audience, the flight of Freedom 7 [
http://www.nasm.edu…] - the first space flight by an American - followed less than a month after the first human venture into space by Soviet Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin [
http://antwrp.gsfc.…]. Freedom 7's historic flight [
http://www.hq.nasa.…intro.htm ] was suborbital, lasting only about 15 minutes, but during it Shepard demonstrated manual control of his capsule. Naval aviator [
http://www.hq.nasa.…shepard.htm ] Shepard was chosen as one of the original seven Mercury Program [
http://www.hq.nasa.…toc.htm ] astronauts. He considered this first flight [
http://www.hq.nasa.…] the greatest challenge and actively sought the assignment. Shepard's career as an astronaut spanned a remarkable period in human achievement and in 1971 he walked on the moon [
http://www.hq.nasa.…a14.crew.html ] as commander of the Apollo 14 mission. A true pioneer and intrepid explorer, Alan Shepard died in 1998 [
http://www.nasa.gov…] at age 74.
Explanation
