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 NATIONAL AERONAUTICS
AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION
MAN NED SPACE FLIGHT TEAM
Th e Kational A e ronauti and pace Admini . trali o n ha a
16·man fli g ht per onnel team at :\Jann ed Spacecraft nl e r in
H o us t n. Tex, This teami co mpo ed o f th Pro j ec t '[e rc ur )'
astronaut, c hose n in April 1050, plu additional as tr ona ut!',
e hos n bl s pace offi c ia ls in Se pte mb e r 1962,
With Proj e t :' fe rc ur) n ea rin g co mpl e tion th e e ntire (t ro up
is \\ o rkin g: as an integ ral d tea m o n the up· com in g Proje<:l
Gemini-a prog ram d es ig n d to place t\\'o men in a spacec ra ft
in orb it a r o und th e ea rth for periods of tim e whi c h may reac h
tIr o \\'eeks,
While in o rbitlh ey \\' il! c ntinue with th e illl'es ti ga ti on bep;1I11
in "re"i o us space ni g hh o f man'. ca pabilit' to pe rfo rm in a
\I'e ig htless co nditi o n Ol e r xt nd ed period . o f tilll e : to d ete r·
min e pSI'c hol ogica l and phy iol og ica l reactions or cr II' m em o
bers to ex tend ed ni g hts : to ca rry o ut . cien tifi c il1\'es ti ga ti o n. o f
, pa 'e : a nd to de l'e lop o pe rati onal tec hniqu es o f rendezvo us a nd
d oc kin g with a targe t I' hicle in ea rth o rbit. among o th e r
thin g,
Peo lle oft e n ask, " '\vh)' do men I'o lunteer fo r an ass ignmen t
like thi s?' :\'0 s impl e answer can be g i,'e n, but man~ thin tls a ll
16 m en lial'e ill COlll1110 n mal prol ide ~ome c lues.
The r are all tes t pilot. with mu c h expe ri ence in tes tin p: hi (t h.
performance aircraft. Th e ~ all cons ide r th e space program to
he c hallenges to th em as indil' iduals, as \I'e ll as na ti o nal c ha l·
I np:es, Th ey are all e min e ntly qualified fo r th e mis. i )n5 a head
a nd eac h of th em \\'ants to make the firs t trip to th e m oo n,
Each feel that h e will be able to add mu ch to th e knowl eel ,!!!'! o f
all thr o ug h xperil1lents in s pac tra l e l. In . ho rl. th e l' are
dedicated to pi o nee rin g in th e s pace ffo rt an d in offe rin g th e ir
co ll ec til e tal en t to th e ro untr)' as it striv e, to reac h th e nati o nal
goal s pe ll d o ut to th e Congres:- Ill' th e Pres id e nt in \la I 19G 1 -
to !'end a n Ame ri can or .Am e ri can~ to th e moon, and re turn th em
to th e ea rth . in thi decade,
'i o o ne 111e mb r o f the g ro up 'a n J e na med as an al'e raCTe
as tr ona ut. Howe ve r , th e ave rage ha been ta ken o f so me o f
th e I' ital s tati ti cs of me mbers o f th e 16· m a n tea m and th e
fo ll o \\ ing dete rmin ed- th e a l'erage he ii!h t o f th e g r o up is :)
fee t 10 in 'hcs : th e al'e rage we ig ht is 1601 ~ po unds: th e al'erage
age i ,3,- ~ ea r : and th e ave ra ge Ai p: ht tim lo)!g:ed is m o re th all
1.200 ho ur ill cO lll en ti o nal a ir -ra ft an d more th a n 1.800 h ou r"
in j e t air -raft.
Additionally, eac h man of th e gro up ha;< a t leas t one d eg ree
in sc ien e o r engin ee rin g , Ea c h ha . a number o f ho bbi es ( with
a minimum o f tim e to _pend on th em, and genera lly partici·
pate!' in a t lea, t one of th em to ma intai n top ph~ ' ;< i ca [ con dili o n,
\[ alll ha l'c parti ·ipa ted in BOl ro ut ac til ities, both in ac ti\'e
a nd cons ultin g r o l . : are ac til'c in cOlllmun it y a ffa irs : and a re
actil'e in prof ~~ i o n a [ organ izati on ~uc h as th e American
R ocket or i e t ~·. th e Soc iety of Experimental T e.!' t Pil o t ~ an d
th c Tn st itute of Aero&pace Sciences,
1
NEil A. ARMSTRO NG , a nali\ e of Wapakoneta, Ohio, wa g raduated from
Purdu e University in 1955 with a ba chelor of sc ience degree in a ronauti ca l
enginee ring and ha in ce a ttend ed th e University of Californi a on a part·time
bas is workin g toward a master' degree in ma the matics. Arm strong wa s a
laval av iator from 1949 until 1952. a nd. during hi la t two year of th a t
se rvice, new 78 combat mi s ions in th e Korean action. Following gra duation
fT m Purdu e, th e 32·yea r·old t st pilot worked for A A's L wi Flight Pro-
pulsion Laboratory, th en at Edwards Ai r Force Ba e as an a ronauLica l re-
ea rch engin ee r for A A.
He has participated in ni ght-te t work on the F- lOO, F- I04, B 7, F - I02 and
th e X- J5. H e i a se nior m mb r of th e America n Rock t oc iety, a member
of th e Exp erim ental Te t Pilot A soeiation, a nd a member of th e Institute of
e ro pa re cienccs. Hf' was th e rec ipi ent of th 1962 In s ti tut e of eros pa e
i nces Octave Cha nut e wa rd .
Arm strong i th e on of Mr. a nd irs. S teven Arms trong of Wa pakon eta , and
i married to the form er J a nc Elizabeth Shearon of Chicago, Ill. Th ey h a\'e
on son , Eric,S.
cil Arm trong' specia l a ignm ent i to monitor the develo pment, des ign
a nd u e of trai n r and simulator, including new trainin g requirements not
a sociated with specific mission imulators.
2
FRANK BORMAN, a major in th e nit ed ta te~ Air Force. wa s horn in ar),.
Ind. He a ll nd ed th nited ta tes Military Academy a t West Point, .Y.,
and wa grad uated in 1950 with a ba chelor of sc ience degree. He received
his master 's degree in aeronautical engineerin g from Ca lifornia In stitute ol
Technology, P asadena, in 1957. From 1957 until 1960 he wa s in stru ctor of
Thermodynamics and Fluid Mechani cs at th e Mil itary Acad emy.
Pri or to el cti on a an a tronaut in ept mber 1962. hI' se rved a all
in tructor at thc erospace He 'aT h Pilot ch oo l at Edwards A ir Fore Sa c.
wh re he prepa red and delivered academ ic I ctures, simul atoT bri efin gs. a nd
ni ght-te t bTiefin gs on th e theory and practi c of pa cecraft testin g. lie kept
ab reast of deve lo pment in mann d spacecraft and co n ulted with JTgin een;
a nd te t pi lot in coll ec tin g material {or use in th e continuou revi ion of th e
co urse curri culum.
Borman, 34, is th e on of Mr. and Mrs. Edwin Borm a n of Phoenix , Ariz.,
a nd is marri ed to th e form cr u an Bugby of Verona, .1. They have two
so n - Fr d erick, 11, and Edwin , 9.
Frank Borma n' s pec ial a sign m nt i to concentratc on th booster d ign
a nd d velopment program , especiall y booster-abort systcms, and th e d ve lop-
men t of abort-preventing proced ur (r mis ion uccess.
M. SCOTT CARPENTER. a lieute nant cO IlUlI antiPr in th e nited State" CHARLES CONRAD. JR .. a :'\ <1 \) li"ult·ntlnl. \\a , horn in Phil a de lphi a. P a ..
:'/aI'Y, wa, c ho5r n as a Projec t .\I e rcury astrona ut in April 1959. I Ie pilot (' '' in 1930. li e at te nd ed Prince ton ni\'c r~ it y and was j!raduat ed with a bac he lor
the urom 7 pa ec raft on a three·o rhit f1i ~ ht of th e ra rth '\Iu y 2l. 1962. of ~(' i (' n c(' drgrr{' in .w ronauti ra l eng: in (>C" rin g.
Carprntl' r was born in Boulder, Co lo. Followin g: g raduation, 11 (' entered the la\y, and la ter a tte nd ed th e Navy Tes t
He ente r d Colo rado Coll ege in 1943 to pa rtic ipat e in the ' a\l' \ V- S pro · Pil ot choo l a t Pa tux e nt Hive r, 'Id. From 1959 until 19lil he was a fli g ht
!( ram. and aft r a yea r there had succe s ive trainin g at L '\[ ary's Pre· Fli j!ht ins tru c tor a n l pe rforman cl' t'ng: inre r at til{' ava l Air Stati on th er e.
. choo l a t .\Ioraga, Calif. , and Ottumwa, I owa. When th e V-5 program e nded Co nrad is a member of th (' Tm,titut e of Acro~ra("e c ienc and an a soe iate
at th l' close of World War II. h e entere I th e niv e rsity of Colorado a t Boulder. m cmilf' r of th E' Soc iety of Expe rim enta l T s t Pilot .
and j()ined the Navy fo r f1i !! httrainin g in 19+9. His la' t U"i!(nnll' nt. prior to being cho!'en a s o ne of th e astrona ut s la ~ t
In 01' mile r 1951, he wa as ign cd to Patrol Squadron 6, ba sed a t Barbours Se ptcmb r, wa, as . af ty Officl'r for F'i j!hte r qu ad ron 142 and he fore that
Pint, !lawa ii , a nd durin j! the Korea n confli c t h e engaj!ed in antisubmarine tim(' he was a n FIll in!'tru c tor a t th e ava l ir tatio n, ,',Iicamar. Ca li£.
shippin!! s urve illan cr an I a rial mining artivities with that quadron in th l' Co nrad is th e , on o f Charles Co nra d of , 'a raw ta , Fla. , an I i\Trs. Fra nces V.
Yellow ea . outh China Sea and the F o rm o a trait. In ol'ember 1954. Sargent o f II u\crforcl, Pa. li e is marri ed to the fo rm er J ane DuBose of . all
h e e ntered th e ' avy T est Pil ot choo l a t Patuxe nt Ri w r, Md. , and followin g nto nio. T ex. The Co nrad ~ haH' fo ur son!'- P e te, 8. Thom a •• 5, Andrew, 3 .
hi s gradua ti on wa s assigned to th e El ec troni c T e t Divi sion . and Christopher. 2.
Carpe nte r, 37, is married to the form c R ne Louise Pri ce o [ Boulder and C ha rles Conrad'~ sp cc ia l ass ij! nm en t is to spec ia lize in cockpit la youts, in ·
th e oupl c hav e four c hildren- Mark. Ja y, Kriste n, and Ca ndace . II is fat\1('r. strum ent di s pla ys and pilut co ntrol s. to ins ur(, that syste ms " dis plays" ace
M. . Carpenter. li ves at Palm e r Lake, Colo. a ppropriate l), int ('!(rat e d into cockpit pa nek
cOll Carpente r' spec ial as ip:nm e nt i til(' lunar ('xcur,ion modui<- ( LE~f)
of th e Apollo project.

3
\I e rcury As trona ut L. GORDON COOPER, JR., a major in th e Air Fo rce,
born in h aw nee, Okla .. in 1927, was e lE'cted to fl y th M ercur y· tl a 9 nne·
day mis ion. H c rvcd in th e Marin c Corps, a ttend cd th c Nava l Academy
Prepa ratory ehoo l, was a memb er of th e Pres id enti a l 11 0nor Guard in Wa sh·
in gton, O. .. a nd attcnded th e nivcr ity of H a wa ii fo r three y a rs be for e
receiv in /! a n A rm y commi sion. H e trans ferred to th e ir Force a nd was
ca ll e I to active duty in 1949 for fli ght tra ining.
s~ i /! n ed to th e 86 th Fi g hter· Bom ber Group a t J\llIni h, Germany, he a ttend ed
th e European Exten sion of th e ni vers ity o f i\ la ryla nd , la te r attend ed th e
Air Force Tn stitute of T cchnology a t Wri/!ht-Pa u erson Ai r F orce Ea e, a nd
received a ba he lor' de/!rel' in aerona uti ca l c ngi neeri n/!. Nex t, oop r wa s
as igned to th ir F or e Exp rim cn ta l Fli ght Test chool a t Edwards iT
r ore B a~e, a li[. fter I(radu at ion 11(' jo in d th e P e rform anc En gin eerin g
Branch of th e Fli l-(h t T t Dil· i ~ ion.
Hi s mother, i\ lrs. L. ordon Coo per , li" e at a rbond al e, Colo. H e is m a rried
to th e form er Trud y 01 n o f ca lli e, W ash. , a n I th e 0 pers have two
d aughters-Ca ma la a nd ]anita.
Gordo n oopr r' s p c ia I ass ignm nt co nsists o[ pi lot pha cs o f Project
;\ [ereu ry.
tronaut JOHN H. GLENN , JR., th t, fi r~ t me rica n a tronaut to orbit the
ea rth is a na tive o f Ca mbrid /!e, Ohio. li e a tte nd d luskin gum oil /!e prior to
nt erin g th e ava l Avi a tion Cad et Pro/!ra m a nd later a ttend ed th e Uni ve rsity of
Maryla nd.
Th 41-yea r·old Gle nn, a Marin e li eu t nant co lo nel, jo ined Fi ghte r qlladron
155 in th e J\Ia r hall Island in 1943 an d fI IV 59 co mbat mis ions. Durin g the
Korea n action , he new 63 mi si n "i th ~ I ari n e Fi ~ht e r quadron 311 , an d 27
whi le an ex h a n ~e pilot with the Air Force.
C lenn a tte nd ed Te t Pil ot c hool at P a tuxent River, i\Id ., IVa PI'oj ct offi e r
0 1\ a numb r o f air raft, la t r was a j"'n I to the Fi gh ter I e ip:n Branch [
tlH' al'Y Bur au of Aer onau ti c in Wa ~hin g to n. H e ha been awa rd d th e
I)i.tinglli_hcd Flying 1'0 five tim e: h olds th e A,ir i\ ledal with 113 lu "ter .
In .l uly 1957, whi le project officer o f th F8U, he se t a tra nsco ntin e ntal fli uht
reco rd from Los n/!f"lf's to CIY York o f 3 hours and 23 mi nute .
Th e so n of II lr. and i\ lr . J ohn II. lenn of ell' Concord, Ohi o, he is marri d
to th!' forme r Ann a 'largare t Ca. tor, a l oof that co mmunity. Th ey have two
c hildr n- J ohn Dav id and a rol yn nn .
J ohn G l nn' . pccial ass ignme nt is I roject po li o. whi h i th pI' j e t [or
manned pace night to th e moon.
 Astronaut VIRGil I. "GUS " GRISSOM , th e second l\Ier cury pilot to fl y a
s uborbital mi ssion, was born in Mitchell, Ind.
He wa s grad ua ted from Purdu Univer ity with a bachelor' degree in
m echanical enl\'in ee rin g in 1950, th en took av iation cadet trainin g a nd rece ived
hi s wings in March 1951.
Th e 36·yea r·old A ir Force major fl e w 100 combat missions in Korea in F- 86
l Sahre j ets with the 334th Fighter·Intercep tor Squadron. Following that a ction
h e became a jet pilot instru ctor at Bryan, Tex.
In Au gust 1955, he ent ered th e if Force In titut e of T echn ology at Wri ght·
P atterson A ir Force Base, Ohi o. to tud y aero na utical engin eerin g.
In October 1956, he a ttend ed th e Te t Pilot School at Edwards Ai r Force
Base, Ca lif., and later returned to Wri ght-Patter on Air Force Base in May 1957
as a test pil ot ass i ~ n (' d to th e Fighter Brancb.
Gri sso m is Ih ~ son of Mr. a nd Mrs. Dennis D. Grisso m of Mitchell , a nd is
marri ed to the form er Betty L. Moore, also of th at co mmun.ity. They have
two so ns, Sco tt a nd Mark.
Virgil Gris am' spec ial as ignm ent i Pr ject Gemini, whi ch has rend ezvou s
in space as a major obj e live.
JAMES A. lOVEll, JR., a lieutenant co mm a nder in th e Navy, wa s born
in Cleveland, Ohio. H e attend ed the University of Wiscon in from 1946 to
1948 and tbe U . . Naval Academy from 1948 to 1952.
From J anuary 1958 until Jul y 196 1, be was a tes t pilot a t the Naval Air Tes t
Center a t I alllx ent River, Md. Hi s work th ere included ervi ce as program
man age r for th e F4H Weapons System Evalu a tion .
The 34-yea r·old Lovell, who was chosen as an as tronaut in Septemb er 1962,
was gradualed from th e A",jation Safety ch oo l of th e niversity of So uth ern
Califorruia in 1961.
Hi s la L as ignm ent wa as ni i!ht in s tru ctor a nd safety offi ce r at th e ava l
Air tati on, Oceana, Va.
Lovell's mo th er, Mrs. Blanch Lovell, res id es at Ed gewater Beach, Fla. He
is marri ed to th e former Ma ril yn Lillie Gerlach of Milwauk ee, Wi s., a nd th cy
have three chil dren- Barba ra Lynn , 9, J ames Arthur, 7, and usan Kay, 4.
J ames LO\'e Jl ' spec ial as ignm ent i to monitor design and developmen t of
all recovel)' systems, such as pa rag lid er, parac hute a nd LEM land in g systems, in·
cludin g resolvin g operational problems in th e ree ntry and recovery part of th c
miss ion .
5
JAMES A. McDIVITT, un \ir For~l' rup tai n. \\8 '; namcd a, an astro naut in
e ptcmb er 1962. Th t> :33-yea r·o ld na ti\'e o f Chi cago, III .. a ttend ed J ac kson
Juni o r Collcp:c fro m 1948 to 1950 . a nd th e Univcrs it y o f l\lichigan from 1957 to
1959. He wa g l'a lu a led first in his ClclSS and J'l'ce ived a bac he lor of ci nc('
d e~ ree in ae ronautj ca i engin ee rin g.
li e joined th Air Porce in 1951 and II w 1-l5 omhat mi 'sio ns in F- 80' s a nd
F- 86 's durin g th Korea n ae t ion. 1\1 Di"itt atte nd ed th . , Ail' Force Exp e ri ·
mental T ei' t Pilot c hoo l a t Edward s ir F orce l1a e in 1959 a nd 1962 a nd th e
Air Force A ros pace Resea rc h Pil ot Co ur e in 1961. lli. la. t a ignm ent ",ao
a~ an exp erilll f' nt a l fli p:ht test offi cer a t Edwa rd .
Mc Divitt i a l11l'mlJ r of the In titut e of e ros pace cie nces. th e Am crican
Ro ket Soc iet)' , and th Soc ie ty o f F:xp c rime nta l T e t Pilot .
lIi s parent ar e 1\11'. and Irs. ] ame lcDivitt, o f la ck on , Mich. He i
married to the fo rm er P a t rioia Ann Il aa o f Cleve land, Ohio. They have three
children - .\ li chae l A., Ann Lynn, a nd Pa t ric W.
J am S l\ !c Divitt's s pecial a ig nm ent is d e ign a nd d l'c1opm cllt o f g uida nc"
and nav iga t ion sy tems and a id , ["r op er ation a l r cquircnwnt s.
6
WALTER M. SCHIRRA, JR., a avy co mmand er, i · a native o[ lI a ken ack,
.J . Th e 39·yea r·o ld J\!er ' ury astron a ut ha mad e th c lo ng st pace fli ght of
a ny A me ri can to dat e. hi s s ix·orbit l1li ~ ion on Octo be r 3, 1962 .
li e att nd l'd th e e wa rk . .J ., Co ll ep:e o f Enp: in ee rin g [or one year he(ore
e nterin /! thl' la\'a l Acad c lll , from whi r h he wa gradu a te d in 1945.
Schir ra re e ived fli g ht trainin g a t P ensaco la, Fla. , a nd la te r e rved with Fip:hter
Sq uad ro n 71. s an cxc hanp:c pilot with th e ir Fo r ce, he fl e w 90 miss ions in
Korea in F- 8I E a ircraft.
J
ll e t oo k part in th e d ('w lopm nt of th e Sid('\\inder mi ", il e a t Chin a La k e.
Ca lif. ; a nd was projec t pilot for th e F 7 - .3 utl as and in tructor pilot for the
Cutla ss a nd til(' FJ .3 Fury.
'c hir m a tt end ed the 1 a\a l Air. a[c ty Oni e r c hoo l at til nive rbity of
Sou the rn Cu lifo rnia. a nd had trst pilot t ra inin g a t P a tux e nt River, Id. I ii,
last a ignlll e nt hefore joiniJ1 p: Projec t J\l erc ury in pril 1959. was a t Patux e nt
in s uit a bilit y development work on th F4H .
lIi s pa rent s. l\ lr. a nd ,\Irs. Wa ltr r i\ 1. c hirra. res id e a t La J olJ a, Ca lif. He is
rnarrie I to th e f rlll er Josephin ' r.. Fra e r o f . ra lli e. W ash. Th ey ha\'e t wo
childre n- Walt I' '\1. ][1 , a nd uzunn e.
~ ' a lt e r chirra s pec iali zes in ove ra ll o pe ration s a nd tra inin p:.
ELLIOT M. SEE, JR., was hurn in Da Ua , Tex ., July 23, 1927. H e rece ived
a ba che lo r of sc ience dc)!rce from th e .5. 'lerc ha nt 'la rine Acad emy in 1949,
and a mas t r o f ,c il'n ce degrc(' from th e niyer ity of Ca lifornia a t Los Ange ll's
in 1962.
pe se rved in til l' ayy from 195:{ t o 1956. Foll ow in p; hi s /Iraduati oll in 1949,
until hI" e nt ered th(' ' avy a n d sin ce that service, he h as worked for Cen ra l
Electri c Olllll a n ), fir s t as a fli ght te t enl[in eer and la ter as a n xperilllc nta l
te. t pilot.
II i last job with Gpnc ra l Elec tri c was a t Edwards, Ca lif. , wh e re he se n 'cd
as proj ec t pilot 011 th e J 79- 8 Enp;i ne Eva lu ati n Prop; ralll in their F 41T ba iled
airc ra ft. li e as, i, t d til e proj ec t e nl( in ee r a nd fl e w a pproximat e ly h alf of th e
F411 mi ion s.
ee i a memher of th e Ins tit1lte o f Aero pace cie nces. He h a~ 10f!l(ed more
than 3,200 hours liy ing tim e. in cludin g 2,300 hours in jet ai rcr a ft.
His pa r en ts, J\lr. and -'If. Elliot Il l. c, re id e in DaLia. H e i" marri d t o
the former Ma rilyn J ane De na hy o f C or)!etown, Ohi o, and th ey have two
da u g hters. a ll y, 6. a nd Ca rol yn, 5.
Elli ot See's. pec ia l ass if! nm e nt is to monitor the design and d ev lopm cn t. of
el e trica! a nd seq llPnt ia l sys tems. Tn add ition, h e will a id in the coordina ti on
for mi ion planninl(.
ALAN B. SH EPARD, JR., a ayy eOl11 mandrr and a P rojec t -'tercur)' a t ronaut
IVa America' first man in s pace. He fl ell a u borh ita l mission ,\fay 5, 1961.
Th e 39·y a r·o ld na tive of Ea t De rr)" .11., was g rad ua ted fr om th e U . . Nava l
Academy in 194-l, und th e ava l War Co ll eg!' a t ew port, H. I. , in 1958.
S hepa rd a ttend d th e 'u v), T e t Pilot Schoo l at Pa tux ent ilive r, i\ JtI. , in 1950,
and s uh~e lu elltl)' s(,l"ved two tours in fli g ht tf'st work th ert·. Duri np; hi s firs t tou r.
he too k part in hil(h al titud e t('sts. a nd took part in ('x pt'rim en ts in t('st and
de\'e lopme nt of th e a\y" in -O i{!:ht refu lin g y~ t ('m. carr i{' r buitability tri a l o f
th e F 2113 B ans h e, a nd Navy tri a ls o f th e first a nglC'd tarriC'r de r k.
Durin g hi s seco nd tour a t P a tux ent, he was en p:ap;ed in testin g th e F:3 11 Dcmon,
F 8U Cru sa d er, F4D Skyray, and th e FllF Ti ge rral. li e was proj ec t te t p ilot
on th e P5D ky la ncer, a nd pent his last fi\e month s th e n' a an ins tru ctor in
th e T t Pilot ·c hoo !.
Hi parent a r 0 1. and i\ lr . A la n B. S hephard, o f Ea st De rry. S h ephard is
ma rried to th e form r Loui se Bre wer of Ken ne tt Sq u a re, P a . Th ey have two
daughters-J ul iana and La ura.
Alan B. hc pard s pecializes in pilot pha<e, of Proj e t i\1l'r ury.
7
As trona ut DONALD K. "DEKE" SLAYTON was born in ' pa rta , Wis., and
I!raci uated from th e ni versit y o f Minn esota with a ba chelor's degree in aero-
na utical engin ee rin g in 1949.
Th e 38-yea r-old Air Force major receil'ed his win gs in 1942, and new 56 combat
mi s ions in B- 25's with the 304lh Bombardment Group in Europe. H e r eturn ed
to the nited tates as a B- 25 instru ctor pilot in 1944 and th en served wi th a
IInit chec kin g out pilot in th e B- 26_
H joi ned the 319th Bom l a rdmrnt Group on Okinawa in Ap ril of 1945, Oew
seve n co mbat mis ions ove r J apa n, a nd spent anoth er year as a B-25 in structor
befor ent ering th e ni ver ity of ~ [inn eso t a .
F oll ow in g grad uation he was a n aerona uti cal engineer with Boeing Aircraft
'ompany in Sea ttl e, returnin g to ac ti ve duty w'ith th e [inneso ta National Guard
in 1951. He attended th e T est Pilot School at Edward s Air Force Base, Calif.,
in 1955 a nd spe nt three yea r as an experimental jet aircraft test pilot.
layton is the son of Me. an d Mrs. Charles S. Slayton of S parta and is married
to th e form er Marjori e Lunn ey o [ Los An geles. The Slay tons have on son, Kent.
Donald Slayton is coo rdinator for astronaut act iviti e , and ma intain s ove rall
sup ervi . ion of astronaut duti es.
8
Astronau t THOMAS P_ STAFFORD was born in Weath rford . Okla.
Th e 32-yea r-old Air Force ca pta in IVa grad uated [rom th e U.. aval Acad my
at Annapolis, Md., in 1952, th en went int o th e Air Force.
As hi eCof th e P erforman ce Branch, Expe rim ental T est Pilot Di vision, U AF"
ero pace R e car ch Pil ot ch ool at Edward s Air Force Base, he was responsible
for th e s upervi sion a nd admi nistrati on of fiyin g curri culum for stud ent t st pil ots.
tafford monitored all Ri ght and academic chedules, establi shed ba ic tex tboo k
and participa ted in a nd d irected th e writin g of night test manuals for use by
th e staff and tud cnts_ S tafford i co-a uthor of the Pil ot's Ha ndbook for Per-
Cormanc Fli ght T estin g, and o f th e Aerody nam ics H andboo k for P erforman e
Fli ght T es tin g.
He i th e so n of Mrs. Ellen Cra btree, of Wea th erford, Okla. He is married
to th e form er Faye Laverne hoemaker, also of Wea therford. Th e taffo rd ~
have two daught ers, Dianne and Ka ren.
Thomas tafford's special as ignm enl i to monitor the de ign and d velop-
ment of co mmuni ca ti ons and in strum entat ion sy tern s, in urin g th at on board
system are compa tible with pilot need and properly integra ted with th e mission
co ntrol sy tem, grollnd ope ra ti onal support a nd other co mmunica ti on links.
Astron a ut EDWARD H. WHITE \,'a s born in San An toni o. T ex.
He was g rad uated from th e .S. Milit ary Academy a t Wes t Point un 195 2
with a bac helor of sc ie nce d eg ree, an d r ece ived a maste r of sc ic nce degr ee in
a eronauti ca l ng in ee rin g [rOI11 th e Un i versit y of Mi chi gan in 1959.
Th e 32.y ar·o ld Air Force cap t ,~ in joined that bra nc h of the se rvice upon
graduation from th e '\lilita ry Acad e m y a nd a ll end e I th e A ir Force Tes t Pi lot
Schoo l a t Edwa rds A ir Force Base, Ca lif. , in 1959. !-I e a lso a ttended th e A ir
Force urv iva l Schoo l a t Bad To lz. Germany.
As a n experi me nl a l test pilo t with t he Aeronau ti cal Sysle m Divis ion a t
Wri g ht· Patter on ir Force Basc. Oh io, he made fli ght tests [or resea rch a nd
wea pon s systems d "elopme nl , wrote tec hni ca l e ng in eering repo rts, and mad('
recommendation s for improve ment in ai r c raft design and construction.
Whit e is th l' so n of Mr. a nd Mrs. Edward H. Whil e of S t. P et rs bu r g, Fla.
He is marri ed to th e fonner Pa tri cia Eil en Finega n of Washin gton, D. C., and
they h ave two c hi ldren, Edwa rd a nd Bonnie Lynn.
Edward White's s pecial assignm nt is to monitor th f' desig n a nd dp1 elop ment
o f fli ght control system a nd rela led e qu ipm e nt.
A ·tronall t JOHN W. YOUNG wa born in San Franci co, Ca lif.
HI;' was grad ua ted from Geo rgia In til ute of Tec hn ology in 1952 with a
bac helor of sc ience deg ree in ae ronauti ca l e ngin eerin g.
Th e 32·yea r·o ld Navy li e ute na nt co mmand er jo in ed th e avy imm ed ia te ly
after g radu a ti on. Hi s last as ignm en l, pri or 10 se lec li on as a n as tronaut tra in ee,
wa s a main te na nce offi cer for Fighte r quad ron 53 a t the al'al Air Statio n in
]\ liramar, Ca lif. Early in 1962 he set world tim e· lo·clim b reco rds for the 3,000·
and 25,000'm cler events in Projec t Hi gh Jump.
From 1959 until 1962 he \Va prog ram mana ger a nd tes t pil ot for the avy
F4H proj ect. He pent thi s pe ri od fl yin g and writin g te hni ca l reports and test
results for preliminary eva lu a ti on by th e Navy.
Youn g is th e o n of Will illln Young, II'ho n01l" res ides a t Orlando, F la . He is
marri ed to th e fo rmer Barba ra Vin ce nt White of Sava nn a h , Ga. Th e co upl e
ha two c hildre n, Sa nd ra a nd John.
J oh n Youn g's s pec ial assignment i to mon itor the des ign a nd developm e nt of
environme ntal co ntrol systems, _urviva l gear, pressu re suits, cO ll ches a nd oth er
r ersona l eq1l1ipm e nt.
9

LEFT: A T /WNAUT WALTEH M. SCU InHA , 111..,
is showII duri ll g a "/ligh t' in th e ALFA trai ll er .
WCNT: A THO AUT DO ALD K. LAYTO
.,tep,' fro ", th e !folldola of the hum.an celltrifu~e at
10/lIIs/'ill e. Pell "syl va ll ia.following a test.
B/!,' LO JI7: a gro u p of th e (lst ro /Illu.ts a" d oth er
1I1""lI ed pacecraft Cen ter alit! Aerojet-Cell eral
e mployee" watc h a fi rin g O / l l Tit.a ll /I e ll g ill e
dll r ill ~ a fie ld trip at S acram ell to, Cali/orllia.
The trammg program fo r the night per onnel of Manned
pace nig ht Cente r in lude six ma jor topic are a : Training in
ve hi Ie operatio n, training in I a e cience, familiarization
with co ndition of pacefli ght, training in ground activities,
ph y i al fitn e s and mainte nance of ni ght skill .
F or training in vehicle op rati on, procedure inclu Ie lectures
o n the various system and operati on. field trips to oth er la_
ti o nal e ronauti c and Space dmini tra tion installation and
co ntrac tors' fa ciliti e , training manuals, sp ec ialty tud y pro-
g ra m by the indi vidual pilot with ubsequent report to the
"ro up: mockup inspecti o n. and tra ining devices.
Training device ha ve include I the ALFA ( Air Lubricated
Free x i ) imulator which permit practi ce in olving orbit
a nd r etrofir e a ttitude co ntrol pro bl m b y using external ref-
e rence thro ugh imulated peri cope and window di play ; the
centrifuge train er a t J ohn viII , Pa .. which is used a a d ynamic
traine r fo r the reentr y rate dampin g task and the MA TIF
IMu ltiple-Axis Spin Te t Iliertia Facility) at A A's L wis
Re earch Center whi h provid e tumbling rate in all three axes
up to 30 revolutio ns per minute. The train e rs mo t in u e,
h wever. in pre pa rin g th pil ot f I' Ai O' ht, a re th pI' edures
tra iner "hi ch provid r a li tic imulation o f the pacecraft
s te ms [un cli o n and failur es. Effective use of the pro ed ure
lrainers is predicated upo n the knowledge o f systems ma lfu nc-
ti o ns which might orc ur, an "I what actions a re taken by the pilot
lo co rrect lh em .
Ba ic cience subj ects in which the nig ht per o nnel are giv n
r fr e her cou r e include pace nav iga ti on, computer theory,
fli g ht mechani . a tronom y, ph ysics of th e upper atmo phere
and pace. 1 ioastronautic , ad anced prop ul ion systems, aero-
d namic . g uidance and on trol. pace comm unicati o n. g I b al
meteorology. and elenology. In addition, further traininO' i
co nducted in star recogn iti on logeth er with meth ods of ob erv-
ing so lar and m leoro logica l events, earlh and lunar terra in , a nd
p ych o log i a l and phy io logica l r eactions. Thi s training aid
in delermining man 's ca pabi lity in the pace environment and
la y th e g rou n lwo rk for th e sc ientific activities of th e a tro-
nauts.
In familiarizing th e Aig hl personne l with co ndition s of s pa e-
ni g ht, a n e entia l require me nt i lo inlrodu ce th e novel co ndi-
lion s lo b enco unte red. Th e e inclu Ie hig h accelerali n,
weightle ness. red uced atmospheric pre ure . hea t. di orien ta-
li o n. tumblin O'. noise and vibration. fu ch has been le arned
al out these co ndilions lhr ugh th e re ult o f th e Proj ect Mer- I
cur y ub rbilal ni ghts of Astrona uts Alan B. Shepard , Jr. , and
V ir O' il I. Gri om; th e three·orbit ni ght of A trona uts J hn H.
G lenn , J 1'. , a nd M. Scott Carpen te r and the six-orbit fli g ht o f
tronaut W a lle r 1\1. Schirra, Jr. We ig htl es ne s presente d one
o f the major co ncern s durin '" the ea rlier da ys of Merc ur y train-
in g du e t lhe diffi cult y of accompli hing thi tate for m ore th an
a very shorl peri od of time. Thi co ncern , however, wa
a ile ia ted wilh the Ri g ht o f china , \\ho experi e nced nin e h our
of weig h li e s fI ight and termed it " mo t pl ea ant."

NI GHT: NE IL A I<MST RONG

ill s p ec ts a M er c ury s pa cecraft
ill th e IV hite r ootn at Han g ar •

FAN la GH I': JOHN GtENN rull S O il the

b each at Capp e mll/ veTal , Florida.

A60 Vl!: : ASTRONAUT and NA A employees
il/ sp ect p arts 01 the i g m a 7 sp acecralt at Ca pe
Cal/ a veral, Florida, l ollowil/ g the six -orbit
fli ght 01 AstrOl/aut Sc hirra , alJOve.
HELO/P: M ercury astrOl/allts h ear a Gen eral
Dyl/ amies / Astronaut ics e ll" il/eer give a briefin g 0 11
olle phase 01 the ch eck out brie fin g. Ch eck o ut
test s 01 the sp acecralt and laun ch vehicle are a part
oll/ onnal il/ spectiol/ prior to flights.
P erhaps the most often overlookcd of the lrainin g pha ~ es of
the fli g ht per onnel i th e cyround tra ining and it impo rtance
to the ucce s of th e overall 1 a ce program. Th e a. tro naut
parti cipa te actively in th ountdoll n procedure , g r ound fli g ht
mo ni lo ri ng proced ure, and recover and sur ivaI techniq ue .
T hey have played i mpor tant 1'0 1 s .in fli ghl to da tc a g ro u nd
co mm u ni a tors with th e astronaut making th flig ht, and are
emin e ntl qualified to d o 0 on several o unts in ce th ey are so
well ac ]u a int d with both the mLsion pilot and the man y space·
cra ft s)' tems.
Phys ica l co nditi o n i very impo rtant to in ur th a t perform.
ance d oes not deteriorat und er vari o u types of stres es. in ce
all th e pil ot ntere Ith prog ram in good phy ica l hea lth . each
is allowed to und e rtake a \ oluntar y physical ~tn e program
tailored to hi own need. II o f th em wim in a Iditi o n to the ir
o th er dail y exercise which va r y with th e indi vidu a l. J ohn
Glenn, for in tan ce, !'Un , whi le A I he pa rd lif ts we iO' ht .
One of the bigge t prob lems to be fa ced b y t he· fl ight perso n-
nel i th e maintenance o r fli g ht skill. Du to the nature of the
pace proO'rams, o nl y a limited amollnt of actual fli g ht time in
pace an be anticipated for any pilot 0 er a peri od o f yea r . In
recog niti on of thi and to maintain c urrent pilot ski lls, fligh t
perso nn I have been provided high p rforman ce a ircraft and
fly the m reg ularl y.
ABOV/I :'" TRONi/U,/, VmGIL I. "GUS" GRISSOM
checks l' ''riolL ,~ poill'" wi,h ellgineers "nti
techllici"",, duri"g a S/J"cf'cr"lt test at lIallgar S.

BilLOW: ASTUONAU1' GORDON COOPlm IILaill(aillS

{/ c/OM' wlltch Ol'er 'he prog"(,ss ola simulated
Ilight 01 Schirm dltring 011(' ol,he many proced"res
'rainer ,e,"s perlormed prior to the lalter' " six-orbit flight.
·,. ~~:
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NA TlONAl AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION

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