50th Anniversary of Project Mercury

On May 5, 1961, Alan Shepard became the first American in space, making a brief suborbital mission that marked the first manned launch of Pr… read more

On May 5, 1961, Alan Shepard became the first American in space, making a brief suborbital mission that marked the first manned launch of Project Mercury. On the 50th anniversary of that mission, Roger Launius reconsidered the legacy of Project Mercury and America’s first astronauts, examining the origins of these first attempts to reach into space, the Cold War space race, and the meaning of Project Mercury half-century later. Mr. Launius showed many slides during his presentation, “The Right Stuff Revisited: Project Mercury 50 Years On,” and then responded to questions from members of the audience. close

Report Video Issue

People in this video

  • Henry Fortunato Director Kansas City (MO) Public Library->Public Affairs
  • Roger D. Launius Senior Curator National Air and Space Museum->Space History Department

Hosting Organization

Series

More information about

50th Anniversary of Project Mercury

321 Views
Program ID:
299358-1
Category:
Public Affairs Event
Format:
Speech
Location:
Kansas City, Missouri, United States
First Aired:
Jun 25, 2011 | 9:31am EDT | C-SPAN 3
Last Aired:
Jun 27, 2011 | 5:32am EDT | C-SPAN 3

Airing Details

  • Jun 25, 2011 | 9:31am EDT | C-SPAN 3
  • Jun 26, 2011 | 4:35pm EDT | C-SPAN 3
  • Jun 27, 2011 | 5:32am EDT | C-SPAN 3
Purchase a Download

50th Anniversary of Project Mercury

  • MP3 audio - Standard
    Price:
    $0.99