Beginning in 1958 and culminating in 1963, Project Mercury was the United States' first man-in-space program. The objectives of the program, which made six manned flights from 1961 to 1963, were clear: To orbit a manned spacecraft around Earth, to investigate man's ability to function in space, and to recover both man and spacecraft safely. These goals and objectives were successfully completed.

The true beginning of the effort that would in turn be manned space travel cannot be exactly pinpointed. History tells us that it has been in the minds of people since the beginning of recorded history. One might think that is was in the mind of the first people, but with numerous, strict, guidelines space flight was made a reality in 1961 when Astronaut Alan B. Shepard, Jr. rose into space on the first manned space flight in U.S. history. Although the flight only lasted fifteen (15) minutes and twenty-eight (28) seconds this marked a tremendous milestone in space histo

Engineers tested the astronauts' ability to control the spacecraft manually, especially the retro-rockets used to return the craft to the earth. In later missions, astronauts were tested on their ability to perform a variety of orbital maneuvers. (Encarta 1)

Most of the equipment inside the Mercury spacecraft was built using existing technology, although some new systems were designed in order to increase reliability and safety. Mercury scientists developed a new automated system to measure the astronaut's blood pressure. Other new instruments were used to sense the amount of oxygen in the spacecraft and the amount of carbon dioxide in the astronaut's pressure suit.

During the course of the Mercury program, two different launch vehicles were used, each originally designed for military purposes. The United States Army's Redstone rocket was used to launch the first two Mercury spacecraft into suborbital flight. This rocket was developed by a group of engineers under the direction of the German-American scientist Wernher von Braun. The Redstone's Rocketdyne A-6 engine consumed immense quantities of an alcohol-water mixture and liquid oxygen to produce a thrust of 35,100 kg (78,000 lb)-sufficient to lift the Mercury capsule and its astronauts above the earth's atmosphere for a short time.

The first flight, Mercury-Redstone 3, was flown by Astronaut Alan B. Shepard, Jr. It was flown on May 5th 1961, and lasted a total of 15 minutes and 28 seconds. It was flown in Freedom 7. Virgil I. Grissom in the Liberty Bell 7 flew the second manned flight on July 21st 1961. Mercury-Atlas 6 was flown in the friendship 7 on February 20th 1962 by, John H. Glenn, Jr. It was the first orbital flight and the first flight to last over an hour. The total duration of

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