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THIS WAS THE NATION'S SIXTH MANNED ORBITAL SPACE FLIGHT, AND THE "FAITH 7" SPACECRAFT WAS PILOTED BY ASTRONAUT L. GORDON COOPER, JR. THE LAUNCH WAS ORIGINALLY SCHEDULED FOR MAY 14, 1963, BUT DUE TO A MALFUNCTION IN THE RADAR TRACKING SYSTEM AT BERMUDA THE LAUNCH WAS "SCRUBBED" 12 MINUTES BEFORE COUNTDOWN WOULD HAVE BEEN COMPLETED. AT MIDNIGHT, MAY 15, 1963, COUNTDOWN WAS RESUMED AND LIFTOFF OCCURED AT 8:04 A.M. EST. ASTRONAUT L. GORDON COOPER, JR., COMPLETED A TOTAL OF 22.9 ORBITS AND SPENT 34 HOURS, 20 MINUTES IN SPACEFLIGHT. THE LAUNCH AND RECOVERY WAS HIGHLY SUCCESSFUL AND WAS THE LAST OF THE MERCURY FLIGHTS. |
