Object Details
Manufacturer
Radioplane Div., Northrop Corporation
Summary
This is an unflown ringsail (main) parachute from the Mercury program. Approximately 63 feet in diameter when deployed, it is made mostly of nylon. After deployment of a drogue parachute, the ringsail parachute deployed at an altitude of about 10,000 feet to help slow the capsule before it landed on the ocean.
The Radioplane Division of Northrop Corporation made this artifact. In 1971, McDonnell Douglas Astronautics Company in St. Louis transferred many leftover artifacts from the Gemini program to the Smithsonian on behalf of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, including this parachute. The former McDonnell Aircraft Corporation had manufactured the Mercury and Gemini spacecraft.
Credit Line
Transferred from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Inventory Number
A19720466000
Restrictions & Rights
Usage conditions apply
Type
EQUIPMENT-Parachutes
Materials
Nylon, Synthetic Fabric, Cadmium Plating, Steel, Aluminum
Dimensions
Approximate (as photographed): 20.32 x 952.5 x 274.32cm (8in. x 31ft 3in. x 9ft)
Storage (Rehoused in Short PSC): 123.2 × 115.6 × 69.2cm, 79.8kg (48 1/2 × 45 1/2 × 27 1/4 in., 176lb.)
Country of Origin
United States of America
See more items in
National Air and Space Museum Collection
Data Source
National Air and Space Museum
Link to Original Record
Record ID
nasm_A19720466000