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Author
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Topic: Please help me with this.
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Gordon Reade
Member Posts: 334
From: USA
Registered: Nov 2002
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posted 01-09-2003 06:43 PM
  
I just got back from the NASA Ames Research Center (I live about 10 miles away). Anyway they have the Mercury spacecraft FREEDOM 7 II on display and they have it labled as the back up spacecraft for Shepard's suborbital flight. But it's clearly more advanced then FREEDOM 7. It has the window used on later models. Also you can see "FREEDOM 7 II" very clearly painted on the side with the roman numaral "II" very prominent.
I'm sure this is the spacecraft Shepard was hoping to fly on the orbital Mercury flight he unsuccessfully lobbied for. But when I told the guys at Ames this they treated me like I was some sort of "Space Cadet" and insisted it was the back up to his suborbital flight.
What do the rest of you know about FREEDOM 7 II? The guys at Ames think I'm nuts. [This message has been edited by Gordon Reade (edited January 09, 2003).] |
Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 42981
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 01-09-2003 06:52 PM
Gordon --According to the Field Guide to American Spacecraft, you are indeed correct -- the spacecraft you saw was destined for MA-10, Shepard's orbital flight:
http://aesp.nasa.okstate.edu/fieldguide/pages/mercury/mc-15.html |
cfreeze79
Member Posts: 455
From: Herndon, VA, USA
Registered: Nov 2000
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posted 01-09-2003 07:45 PM
For more backstory of this flight (or lack of), visit http://www.helsinki.fi/~lagerste/mercury-atlas10.html and http://www.astronautix.com/flights/meryma10.htm |
Gordon Reade
Member Posts: 334
From: USA
Registered: Nov 2002
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posted 01-09-2003 10:10 PM
Thanks guys. I knew I could count on you! I'm going to make print outs of those web sits and take them with me to Ames tomarrow.P.S. It's just sort of sad that that spacraft has been mislabled for so long with out anyone noticeing or doing anything about it |
music_space
Member Posts: 1179
From: Canada
Registered: Jul 2001
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posted 01-10-2003 11:00 AM
I have a found memory of that visit at Ames, for, among other things, a wind-tunnel shuttle orbiter model, but especially for that Mercury spacecraft that you can touch indeed, slide your finger inside the metally curves of the attitude control thrusters, and of which you can see the retropack.------------------
François Guay
Collector of litterature, notebooks, equipment and memories! |
Gordon Reade
Member Posts: 334
From: USA
Registered: Nov 2002
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posted 01-10-2003 01:28 PM
UpdateWell I just go back from Ames. This time I brought printouts of the web sites on this string. The people at Ames were really friendly and very nice to me. This is what they said. Yes they were aware that the lable on the spacecraft was in erorr. However since the capsule is the property of the NASM they need to obtain permission from Washington D.C. before they can change the lable! They thanked me for my interest and said they welcomed any suggestions and input I might have for the new lable. Also I was invited to review the new lable before it's posted on the display. Still this sounds a bit odd to me. They need the OK from Washington to fix a problem they know is wrong. What do you guys think of this? |
Rodina
Member Posts: 836
From: Lafayette, CA
Registered: Oct 2001
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posted 01-10-2003 01:50 PM
I assume its a formality and a friendly request to give them some time to deal with it. When your neighbor comes over to ask you to trim your lawn, you usually don't break out the mower right then -- even if they're absolutely right. |
KLC
Member Posts: 48
From: U.P. Michigan
Registered: Dec 2002
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posted 01-10-2003 07:44 PM
But it seems pretty cool that they are going to let you check things out before they display it.Rob |
cfreeze79
Member Posts: 455
From: Herndon, VA, USA
Registered: Nov 2000
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posted 02-07-2003 01:56 AM
I was at the Ames Visitor's Center this afternoon (I had some free time between classes at San Jose State, and figured it was a good way to kill time)... On (or rather, in!) the Freedom II spacecraft, they had a description on cardboard describing the actual (instead of incorrect) history of the Freedom II craft. About three paragraphs in length, it explored the capsule's place between Mercury and Gemini...Another victory of revisionist history, or just plain poorly researched history... |
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