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"Mercury 7" redirects here. For the group of astronauts, see Mercury Seven.
Mercury-Atlas 7
Mission insignia
Mission statistics
Mission name Mercury-Atlas 7
Spacecraft name Aurora 7
Spacecraft mass 1,350.0 kilograms (2,976 lb)
Crew size 1
Call sign Aurora 7
Booster Atlas
Launch pad LC-14 (CCAF)
Launch date May 24, 1962, 12:45:16 UTC
Landing May 24, 1962, 17:41:21 UTC
Mission duration 04:56:05
Number of orbits 3
Apogee 260 kilometres (140 nmi)
Perigee 154 kilometres (83 nmi)
Orbital period 88.3 min.
Orbital inclination 32.5°
Distance traveled 122,344 kilometres (76,021 mi)
Maximum velocity 28,242 kilometres per hour (17,549 mph)
Peak acceleration 7.8 g (76 m/s²)
Crew photo
Malcolm Scott Carpenter
Malcolm Scott Carpenter
Related missions
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Mercury-Atlas 7 was a Mercury program American manned space mission launched May 24, 1962. The Mercury capsule was named Aurora 7 and made three earth orbits, piloted by astronaut Scott Carpenter. A targeting mishap during reentry took the spacecraft 250 miles (about 400 km) off course, delaying recovery of Carpenter and the craft. The mission used Mercury spacecraft #18 and Atlas #107-D.

Contents

Crew

Number in parentheses indicates number of spaceflights by each individual prior to and including this mission.

Backup Crew

Delta 7

The original prime crew for Mercury Atlas-7 was to have been Deke Slayton, with Schirra as his back-up. However Slayton was removed from all flight crew availability after the discovery of cardiac arrhythmia during a training run in the g-loading centrifuge. If Slayton had flown MA-7, his spacecraft would have been named Delta 7, as this would have been the fourth manned flight and Delta (Δ) is the fourth letter in the Greek alphabet.

Mission parameters

Mission highlights

Mercury spacecraft #18 was delivered to Cape Canaveral on November 15, 1961. Atlas #107-D was rolled out of the Convair factory in San Diego, CA on February 25, 1962. It was delivered to Cape Canaveral, FL on March 6, 1962.

MA-7 launch preparation (NASA)
MA-7 launch preparation (NASA)

The focus of Carpenter's five-hour Aurora 7 mission was on science. The full flight plan included the first study of liquids in weightlessness, Earth photography and an unsuccessful attempt to observe a flare fired from the ground. At dawn of the third and final orbit, Carpenter inadvertently bumped his hand against the inside wall of the cabin and solved a mystery from the previous flight. The resulting bright shower of particles outside the capsule - what Glenn had called "fireflies" - turned out to be ice particles shaken loose from the capsule's exterior.

Like Glenn, Carpenter circled the Earth three times. Total time weightless 4 h 39 min 32 s. The performance of the Mercury spacecraft and Atlas launch vehicle was excellent in nearly every respect. All primary mission objectives were achieved. The single mission critical malfunction which occurred involved a failure in the spacecraft pitch horizon scanner, a component of the automatic control system. This anomaly was adequately compensated for by the pilot in subsequent in-flight operations so that the success of the mission was not compromised. A modification of the spacecraft control-system thrust units was effective. Cabin and pressure-suit temperatures were high but not intolerable. Some uncertainties in the data telemetered from the bioinstrumentation prevailed at times during the flight; however, associated information was available which indicated continued well-being of the astronaut.

Equipment was included in the spacecraft which provided valuable scientific information; notably that regarding liquid behavior in a weightless state, identification of the airglow layer observed by Astronaut Glenn, and photography of terrestrial features and meteorological phenomena. An experiment which was to provide atmospheric drag and color visibility data in space through deployment of an inflatable sphere was partially successful. The flight further qualified the Mercury spacecraft systems for manned orbital operations and provided evidence for progressing into missions of extended duration and consequently more demanding systems requirements.

Partly because he had been distracted watching the fireflies and partly because of his busy schedule, and a malfunction of the automatic alignment system, Carpenter overshot his planned reentry mark and splashed down 402 kilometers off target.

Mercury spacecraft #18 — Aurora 7, used in the Mercury-Atlas 7 mission, is currently displayed at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, Illinois[1].

Mercury-Atlas Three Orbit Flight Events

T+ Time Event Description
T+00:00:00 Liftoff Mercury-Atlas lifts off, onboard clock starts.
T+00:00:02 Roll Program Mercury-Atlas rotates along its axis 2.5 deg/s from 30° to 0°.
T+00:00:16 Pitch Program Mercury-Atlas begins a 0.5 deg/s pitch from 90° to 0°.
T+00:00:30 Radio Guidance Lock General Electric-Burroughs guidance system locks onto radio transponder in Atlas booster to guide the vehicle until orbit insertion.
T+00:01:24 Max Q Maximum dynamic pressure ~980 lbf/ft² (47 kPa)
T+00:02:10 BECO Atlas Booster Engine Cutoff. Booster engines drop away.
T+00:02:33 Tower Jettison Escape Tower Jettison, no longer needed.
T+00:02:25 Atlas Pitchover After tower separation, vehicle pitches over further.
T+00:05:20 SECO Atlas Sustainer Engine Cutoff, capsule reaches orbit, velocity 17,547 mph (7,844 m/s).
T+00:05:24 Capsule Separation Posigrade rockets fire for 1 second giving 15 ft/s (5 m/s) separation.
T+00:05:25 5-Second Rate Damping ASCS damps capsule rates for 5 seconds in preparation for turnaround maneuver.
T+00:05:25 Turnaround Maneuver Capsule (ASCS) system rotates capsule 180 degrees, to heat shield forward attitude. Nose is pitched down 34 degrees to retro fire position.
T+00:05:30
T+04:30:00		 Orbital Operations Orbital operations and experiments for 3 orbits.
T+04:30:00 Retro Sequence Start Retrofire in 30 s; (ASCS) checks for proper retro attitude −34° pitch, 0° yaw, 0° roll.
T+04:30:30 Retrofire Three retro rockets fire for 10 seconds each. They are started at 5 second intervals, firing overlaps for a total of 20 seconds. Delta V of 550 ft/s (168 m/s) is taken off forward velocity.
T+04:31:00 Retract Periscope Periscope is automatically retracted in preparation for reentry.
T+04:31:50 Retro Pack Jettison One minute after retrofire retro pack is jettisoned, leaving heatshield clear.
T+04:33:00 Retro Attitude Maneuver (ASCS) orients capsule in 34° nose down pitch, 0° roll, 0° yaw.
T+04:40:30 .05 G Maneuver (ASCS) detects beginning of reentry and rolls capsule at 10 degrees per second to stabilize capsule during reentry.
T+04:50:20 Drogue Parachute Deploy Drogue parachute deployed at 22,000 ft (6.7 km) slowing descent to 365 ft/s (111 m/s) and stabilizing capsule.
T+04:50:25 Snorkel Deploy Fresh air snorkel deploys at 20,000 ft (6 km) ECS switches to emergency oxygen rate to cool cabin.
T+04:51:55 Main Parachute Deploy Main parachute deploys at 10,000 ft (3 km). Descent rate slows to 30 ft/s (9 m/s).
T+04:52:00 Landing Bag Deploy Landing Bag Deploys, dropping heat shield down four feet (1.2 m).
T+04:52:30 Fuel Dump Remaining hydrogen peroxide fuel automatically dumped.
T+04:57:10 Splashdown Capsule lands in water.
T+04:57:10 Rescue Aids Deploy Rescue aid package deployed. The package includes green dye marker, recovery radio beacon and whip antenna.


See also

References

  1. ^ "Mercury MA-7" (in English). Encyclopedia Astronautica. Retrieved on 2008-03-13.

External links

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Missions of Project Mercury
Mercury program capsule
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