On this day in 1961: First American astronaut goes to space
The man ultimately chosen for the mission was Alan B. Shepard Jr. Born in New Hampshire on Nov. 18, 1923, Shepard had a military record that included serving in World War II.
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CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – In the mid-20th century, the U.S. and the Soviet Union were competing to see who could send the first human into space.
According to NASA, in 1958, the U.S. initiated Project Mercury with the goal of accomplishing that mission. NASA put together a select group of astronauts to begin training for the trip to space the following year.
The man ultimately chosen for the mission was Alan B. Shepard Jr.
Alan Shepard.
(NASA / NASA)
Born in New Hampshire on Nov. 18, 1923, Shepard had a military record that included serving in World War II and serving several tours aboard aircraft carriers with Fighter Squadron 42.
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In 1959, Shepard became one of 110 top test pilots invited by NASA to volunteer for a manned space program called Project Mercury. Of the 110, only seven were chosen to undergo training. Shepard not only became part of the cohort of seven but he ultimately was chosen for the mission.
Close-up view of astronaut Alan B. Shepard Jr. in his pressure suit, with helmet opened, for the Mercury-Redstone 3 (MR-3) flight, the first American human spaceflight.
(NASA / NASA)
The mission was set to take off from Cape Canaveral in Florida. It was originally slated for May 2, 1961, but due to unfavorable weather, the launch attempt was scrubbed.
On May 5 at 9:34 a.m. ET, Shepard was launched on a spacecraft named Freedom 7. He flew for 15 minutes and 28 seconds, traveling 116 miles up and becoming the first American to reach space.
In this image, President John F. Kennedy, right, awards NASA's Distinguished Service Medal to astronaut Shepard in a Rose Garden ceremony on May 8, 1961, at the White House. In the background are the other members of the Mercury Seven, NASA's original astronauts.
(NASA / NASA)
While the Soviets had won the space race just a few weeks earlier, on April 12, 1961, when they sent cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin into a 108-minute orbital flight, Shepard’s flight still paved the way for other Americans to reach space.