T O P I C R E V I E W |
ColinBurgess | For the book I have nearly completed on the flight of Liberty Bell 7, I am seeking a good-quality scan of a photo of the launch of the unmanned MA-1 mission (the one minus the escape tower). The only images I can locate in the usual places are low resolution and grainy and not entirely suitable for reproduction. Any help greatly appreciated and will be acknowledged in the book. |
ColinBurgess | Many thanks to J.L. Pickering (Retro Space Images) who came to my aid and supplied three excellent, clear images of the required launch. Very grateful, J.L. |
Chuckster01 | Has anyone ever seen any pictures from the ill fated MA-1? I am looking and having no luck with any photographs from the day of the failure and crash. I cannot even find any crash site photos. Thanks if anyone can help. Editor's note: Threads merged. |
Joel Katzowitz | If I remember correctly the spacecraft broke apart about one minute after launch on a wet foggy day and then plummeted into the ocean. So the crash site was in the Atlantic. |
PowerCat | Parts/pieces from this are on display at the Cosmosphere in Kansas. It is really neat display. |
Joel Katzowitz | There are also several pieces of MA-1 on display at my house. At the time of the mission NASA had not yet started to assert ownership of its spacecraft. After the bulk of the spacecraft was recovered from the Atlantic it was re-constructed so the engineers could determine what caused the accident. After the study was completed the spacecraft components were unceremoniously taken to a junkyard. At some point they were "discovered" and recovered and eventually found a number of homes including the Cosmosphere. It's actually a very interesting story. |
Chuckster01 | And that is why I am researching photographs as we have the main hatch at the American Space Museum and we are trying to find some display pictures to go with the hatch. There is a great picture of the reconstructed capsule but the hatch is on the opposite side of the capsule. If anyone has additional photos of the reconstruction that would also help. |
heng44 |
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Joel Katzowitz | Chuck, I have a fair amount of research material on MA-1. It includes images of the spacecraft before launch, basic schematics of the spacecraft, newspaper accounts of the disposition of the components, and detailed images of some of the recovered pieces. Email me if you're interested in any of the material. Unfortunately, none of my material is directly related to the hatch. By the way, I've seen your hatch on display at the museum, and it's amazing. |
mercsim | Can someone (Chuck?) share photos of the hatch? |
Chuckster01 | Here is a picture of the hatch as it on display now. Please keep in mind you are looking at the exterior of the hatch. The force of the blast tore off all attachment points to the spacecraft and I am not sure if the reverse curve is due to the blast or the time it spent in the scrapyard. Still an awesome piece of history. |
mercsim | Super cool! Thank you for sharing. |