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Mercury-Redstone 1A

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Mercury-Redstone 1A
Crew
Members0
End of mission
Mercury spacecraft used on MR-1 and MR-1A missions.

Mercury-Redstone 1A (MR-1A) was launched on December 19, 1960 from LC-5 at Cape Canaveral, Florida. The mission objectives of this unmanned suborbital flight were to qualify the spacecraft for space flight and qualify the system for an upcoming primate suborbital flight. The spacecraft tested its instrumentation, posigrade rockets, retro rockets and recovery system. The mission was completely successful. The Mercury capsule reached an apogee of 130 mi (210 km) and a range of 235 mi (397 km). The launch vehicle reached a slightly higher velocity than expected - 4,909 mph (8,296 km/h). The Mercury spacecraft was recovered from the Atlantic Ocean by recovery helicopters about 15 minutes after landing. Serial numbers: Mercury Spacecraft # 2 together with the escape tower from Capsule # 8, and the antenna fairing from Capsule # 10 were reflown on MR-1A. Redstone MRLV-3 was used. Flight time 15 minutes 45 seconds. Payload 1,211 kg.

Current location

Mercury spacecraft # 2 used in the Mercury-Redstone 1 and Mercury-Redstone 1A missions, is currently displayed at the Exploration Center at NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Federal Airfield, California.

Mercury Redstone Sub-Orbital Flight Events

MR-1A Launch
T+ Time Event Description
T+00:00:00 Liftoff Mercury-Redstone lifts off, onboard clock starts.
T+00:00:16 Pitch Program Redstone pitches over 2 deg/s from 90 deg to 45 deg.
T+00:00:40 End Pitch Program Redstone reaches 45 deg pitch.
T+00:01:24 Max Q Maximum dynamic pressure ~575 lb/ft² (28 kPa).
T+00:02:20 BECO Redstone engine shutdown - Booster Engine Cutoff. Velocity 5,200 mph (2.3 km/s)
T+00:02:22 Tower Jettison Escape Tower Jettison, no longer needed.
T+00:02:24 Capsule Separation Posigrade rockets fire for 1 s giving 15 ft/s (4.6 m/s) separation.
T+00:02:35 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+00:05:00 Apogee Apogee of about 115 miles (185 km) reached at 150 miles (240 km) downrange from launch site.
T+00:05:15 Retrofire Three retro rockets fire for 10 seconds each. They are started at 5 second intervals, firing overlaps. Delta V of 550 ft/s (168 m/s) is taken off forward velocity.
T+00:05:45 Retract Periscope Periscope is automatically retracted in preparation for reentry.
T+00:06:15 Retro Pack Jettison One minute after retrofire retro pack is jettisoned, leaving heatshield clear.
T+00:06:20 Retro Attitude Maneuver (ASCS) orients capsule in 34 degrees nose down pitch, 0 degrees roll, 0 degrees yaw.
T+00:07:15 .05 G Maneuver (ASCS) detects beginning of reentry and rolls capsule at 10 deg/s to stabilize capsule during reentry.
T+00:09:38 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+00:09:45 Snorkel Deploy Fresh air snorkel deploys at 20,000 ft (6 km). (ECS) switches to emergency oxygen rate to cool cabin.
T+00:10:15 Main Parachute Deploy Main parachute deploys at 10,000 ft (3 km). Descent rate slows to 30 ft/s (9 m/s)
T+00:10:20 Landing Bag Deploy Landing Bag Deploys, dropping heat shield down 4 ft (1.2 m).
T+00:10:20 Fuel Dump Remaining hydrogen peroxide fuel automatically dumped.
T+00:15:30 Splashdown Capsule lands in water about 300 mi (500 km) downrange from launch site.
T+00:15:30 Rescue Aids Deploy Rescue aid package deployed. The package includes green dye marker, recovery radio beacon and whip antenna.

References

See also

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