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Beginning of Space Race
The space race started during the Cold War when the Soviet Union sent a satellite into space. Americans were afraid of them having control of space so they sent one of their own up there. -
When the race started, NASA was looking for astronauts. President Eisenhower and Congress made it NASA's responsiblilty to get the first human into space. The president said that they could only choose someone from the military.
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NASA had plenty of people to choose from. They had about 508 people but only needed seven of them. The pilots had to be 5' 11" or taller, between 25 and 40 years old, and had to have 1,500 hours of flying time. That helped NASA shorten their list. They finally picked the seven that were going to space.
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Space Exploration
Training for these seven men were not easy. Each one of them took a turn to be spun around at high speeds. They stopped spinning when the pressure on their bodies was 16 times of their own weight. -
The next test was called the Vomit Comet. It was just like a roller coaster where it would go up and down. Glenn had a fun time with this one. Instead of getting sick, he does flips and walks on the ceiling.
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NASA had hoped that they could send one of their astronauts into space. Unfortunately, the Soviets were successful enough to launch Yuri Gagarin into orbit. He circled the Earth in 108 minutes and then landed safely.
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The U.S. finally sends their first astronaut, Alan Shepard, into space. Alan's 15 minute sub-orbital flight did not impress the Soviet Union. It does shows that the Americans are still in the race.
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Astronaut Gus Grissom repeats Shepard's small flight into space. But after falling into the water, his capsule sunk. Grissom almost drown in the water. He was rescued and was safe. About a month later, the second Soviet's flight lasted about 25 hours and circled the globe 16 times.
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Space Race Facts
John Glenn, the backup astronaut for both Shepard and Grissom, was scheduled to fly. His mission was to circle Earth and if he was successful, the Americans would be able to send warheads anywhere on the planet. After several delays, Glenn is woke up at 2:20 a.m. for a planned 7:30 launch. -
Glenn rode an elevator up to his capsule. His family decided to name it Friendship 7. Afterwards Glenn said, "Flying around the world, over all those countries, friendship was the message I wanted to convey."
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While Glenn closed the capsule hatch, a bolt breaks, then fuel is needed, a valve sticks, and a tracking station goes down. Glenn waits inside a cabin so small, he can barely move. Over 100 million people sit in front of their TVs. With his periscope, Glenn can see thousands parked along the Florida beaches.
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A big flame from the bottom of the rocket at 9:47 in the morning shows that the rocket is going to move. In a minute, the engines burn more fuel than a jet flight from New York to Los Angeles. The boosters cut off, and Glenn watches the rocket fall away. Then he is orbiting the Earth.
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John Glenn starts coming back toward Earth. When the fire outside stops, he runs out of fuel. He can still talk to NASA but they can't do anything. Because of that, he was about to pull the parachute early when it automatically did it by itself.
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John Glenn has done great things. He has also been awarded like the Medal of Honor from the Congress. Friendship 7 is placed in the Smithsonian Museum next to the historic airplanes flown by the Wright brothers and Charles Lindbergh. He was also elected to the United States Senate from Ohio and he served for 4 terms.
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Glenn Returns to Space
Glenn makes even more history. He becomes the oldest person to fly in space. He does studies on how the space flight can effect age.
