The Cosmosphere, part 11

In case you missed any of the previous posts, feel free to follow the links tothe links to part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, part 5, part 6, part 7, part 8, part 9 and part 10.  Please remember, all links open in a new window.

This is where the photos get a bit convoluted.  The Mercury, Gemini programs  influenced Gene Roddenberry's Star Trek.

The Gemini space suits were developed and manufactured by the David Clark Company in Worcester, Massachusetts.  They weighed up to 35 lbs each and were designed for such activities as space walks.  They included both parachute and flotation devices. 

The suits worn by Astronauts Grissom, White, and Chaffee (see the beginning of part 3) when they were caught in the fire and died on board the pre-launch flight in 1967 caused the suit to be modified to include fire proof materials.  The suit in the display was worn in space by Michael Collins for his space walk in Gemini 10.  If his name sounds familiar, he was the command module pilot of Gemini 11, the flight that put Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin on the moon.  Gemini 10, which was flown in space, is shown in the photo, too.

But now we must go back in time, because, as I mentioned, these photos are a bit convoluted, partly due to the way the museum room was laid out and partly because I may have been moving in the wrong direction.

This is the genuine flight-ready back-up of Freedom 7, the Mercury-Redstone capsule that launched the first American, Alan Shepard, into space.  Besides being the first American in space, he also was part of the Apollo 14 crew.

I realize this is a horrible photo, but

it is the genuine Liberty Bell 7.  This is the genuine Mercury spacecraft, recovered from the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean in 1999.

It is the only flown spacecraft owned by a museum outside the National Air and Space Museum. It was restored and is owned by the Cosmosphere.

This incredibly sad tale is one that Gus Grissom never quite lived down.

This shows Grissom being helped into the space capsule by John Glenn.  You can see part of the hatch in which the glass was created by The Corning Glass Company in Corning, NY.  This is a NASA photo of the pre-flight.

The problem was, the flight was perfect, the 15 minute trip was perfect, the return was perfect, but the splash down was a disaster.  The hatch blew and Grissom was accused of blowing it himself, although he swore to his dying day it was not his fault the hatch blew.  Unfortunately, the hatch has never been recovered from the ocean floor, so it can't be proved he didn't blow it.

The sad part is, the helicopter sent to recover the space craft and Grissom was more concerned about saving the space craft than Grissom.  Once the helicopter pilot saw Grissom was out of the space craft, he tried to save the craft, which had taken on too much water too quickly.  A second chopper also tried to help, but by this time, Grissom discovered his suit was taking on water, and he was sinking, too.  He was finally saved by the same chopper pilot who rescued the monkey Ham and later Alan Shepard.

A space suit like the one Grissom wore is shown here.

This is a good time stop as I see my friend Scott is looking at either the Liberty Bell 7 or the Gemini 10.  The Voskhod is in the background to the left in the photo.

Thanks for joining me today at the Cosmosphere.  I am actually headed to a museum in Wichita today, because it is Smithsonian's Museum Day, where Smithsonian Museum affiliates open their doors free of charge.  And I'm not called the Queen of Free for nothing!  Again, I appreciate your visit.