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Viewmaster Space and Science 3D reels
John Glen Man in Space Project Mercury
SAWYERS cc1962 B657
America's Man in Space
| Project Mercury
was the first human spaceflight program of the United States. It ran
from 1959 through 1963 with the goal of putting a man in orbit
around the Earth. The Mercury-Atlas 6 flight on February 20, 1962
was the first Mercury flight to achieve this goal. Early planning and research was carried out by the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, and the program was officially conducted by the newly created NASA. The name comes from Mercury, a Roman mythological god who is often seen as a symbol of speed. Mercury is also the name of the innermost planet of the solar system, which moves faster than any other and hence provides an image of speed, although Project Mercury had no other connection to that planet. The Mercury program cost $1.5 billion. The names of
five of the Mercury astronauts are also commemorated in the popular
1960s TV show Thunderbirds. In the series, Jeff Tracy, the founder
of the fictional International Rescue organization, is a
millionaire
ex-astronaut who has named his five sons -- Scott, Virgil, Alan,
John and Gordon -- after the real-life Mercury astronauts. |
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