Mercury-Atlas 8
Videos
Mercury-Atlas 8 was the fifth United States crewed space mission, part of NASA's Mercury program. Astronaut Walter M. Schirra Jr., orbited the Earth six times in the Sigma 7 spacecraft on October 3, 1
Schirra entering his MA-8 capsule, Sigma 7
Walter "Wally" Marty Schirra Jr.Project Mercury Crewed missions← Mercury-Atlas 7Mercury-Atlas 9 →
Schirra (right) discussing the flight plan with flight director Chris Kraft.
Sigma 7 in its hangar
Project Mercury
Videos
Project Mercury was the first human spaceflight program of the United States, running from 1958 through 1963. An early highlight of the Space Race, its goal was to put a man into Earth orbit and retur
Wallops Island test facility, 1961
Mercury Control Center, Cape Canaveral, 1963
Retropack: Retrorockets with red posigrade rockets
Landing skirt (or bag) deployment: skirt is inflated; on impact the air is pressed out (like an airbag)