The events on this day in history for our heritage companies are noted below.
The earliest event was in 1958, the latest was in 1997
One milestone event (5 to 65+ years ago)
Human Spaceflight:
1958 – USAF Ballistic Missile Division published man-in-space concepts, including lunar landings and development of alternative launch vehicles and stages like a Martin Titan Fluorine-hydrazine “super” stage
1961 – LAUNCH FAILURE: Mercury-Atlas 3, GD Atlas D, LC14, CCAFS -Atlas off-course, destroyed by range safety (MA3 capsule survived)
Military and Classified Programs:
1979 – SAMSO Contracts awarded for conceptual studies of DMSP Block 6 to various companies including RCA, GE and Lockheed – MILESTONE: 45 years ago
1992 – LAUNCH: USA 81, MM Titan II SLV, SLC4W, VAFB
Exploration and Interplanetary Programs:
NONE
Earth-Monitoring and Civil Weather Satellite programs:
1988 – LAUNCH: GE (RCA) Transit O25, Scout G1, SLC5, VAFB
1997 – LAUNCH: GOES 10, LM Atlas I, LC36B, CCAFS
Commercial Programs:
NONE
Test, ICBM, FBM programs:
1962 – LAUNCH: Lockheed Polaris A2, SSBN609, ETR
Other:
NONE
The photos today are from the launch of Mercury-Atlas 3 and subsequent failure/chute deployment of the capsule in 1961. Here’s an interesting story about this failure:
From Wikipedia
As Mercury Flight Director Gene Kranz recalled, “Seconds after the launch, a note of anxiety crept into the Welsh accent of Tec Roberts, the flight dynamics officer (FIDO) responsible for launch and orbital trajectory control, as he reported, ‘Flight, negative roll-and-pitch program.’ A collective shudder went through everyone in the control room as the controllers absorbed the chilling significance of Roberts’s terse report. The roll-and-pitch program normally changed the initial vertical trajectory of the launch into a more horizontal one that would take the Atlas out over the Atlantic. This Atlas was still inexplicably flying straight up, threatening the Cape and the surrounding communities. The worst-case scenario would be for it to pitch back toward land or explode. The higher it flew before it exploded, the wider the ‘footprint’ of debris scattered all over the Cape and surrounding area would be. The RSO (range safety officer) monitoring the launch confirmed the lack of a roll-and-pitch program, then continued to give the Atlas an opportunity to recover and start its track across the Atlantic. The RSO lifted the cover on the command button and watched as the Atlas raced to a fatal convergence with the limits on his plot board. At forty-three seconds after liftoff, Roberts reported, ‘The range safety officer has transmitted the destruct command.’ We waited, not speaking, counting the seconds, listening for the telltale, muffled krump that would signal the mission was over. Carl Huss, the retro controller (RETRO), responsible for reentry trajectory planning and operations, reported, ‘Radar tracking multiple targets.’ Roberts’s response echoed all our feelings: ‘Chris, I’m sorry.’ We sat by the consoles, not talking for several seconds. Then, one by one, the controllers closed their countdown books and started to pack their documents.”
