Object Details
Manufacturer
NASA Marshall Space Flight Center
Summary
This is a 1:48 scale model of the Mercury-Redstone, the launch vehicle for Project Mercury's suborbital missions. The Army's Redstone medium-range ballistic missile was selected in 1958 as the launch vehicle for these flights. It was modified in several respects and was designated the Mercury-Redstone. After several launches of unmanned Mercury spacecraft, the rocket launched America's first astronaut in space on May 5, 1961. Alan Shepard, Jr., and the Freedom 7 capsule were lifted to a height of nearly 140 miles and a range of almost 600 miles in a flight lasting a little less than 16 minutes. The rocket was used once more on July 21, 1961, when it launched Virgil Grissom on another suborbital flight. The model was built by NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center, which transferred it to NASM in 1971.
Credit Line
Transferred from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Inventory Number
A19720995000
Restrictions & Rights
Usage conditions apply
Type
MODELS-Missiles & Rockets
Materials
Plastic
Paint
Non-Magnetic Metal Alloy
Ferrous Alloy
Dimensions
3-D (Rocket, Overall): 8.3 × 8.3 × 53.3cm (3 1/4 in. × 3 1/4 in. × 1 ft. 9 in.)
3-D (Figure): 4.4 × 1.3 × 0.3cm (1 3/4 × 1/2 × 1/8 in.)
Country of Origin
United States of America
See more items in
National Air and Space Museum Collection
Location
National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC
Exhibition
Destination Moon
Data Source
National Air and Space Museum
Link to Original Record
Record ID
nasm_A19720995000