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Spaceflight Insider
Matt Haskell
May 5th, 2021
Alan Shepard launches to become the first American in space during the Mercury-Redstone 3 Mission. Image: NASA
Sixty years ago today, on May 5, 1961, NASA astronaut Alan Shepard rocketed to space in his Mercury capsule to become the first American and the second human in space.
The surprise launch by the Soviet Union of the first artificial satellite called Sputnik 1 in October of 1957 sparked the newest front in the Cold War space. The race to see which country would dominate space was on. But first, humanity had to see if they could survive in space.
The Mercury Seven astronauts in their spacesuits (front row, left to right) Walter M. “Wally” Schirra Jr., Donald K. “Deke” Slayton, John H. Glenn Jr., M. Scott Carpenter, (back row) Alan B. Shepard Jr., Virgil I. “Gus” Grissom and L. Gordon Cooper, Jr. Credit : NASA
10 Dec 2020
Vice President Mike Pence, at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Wednesday, introduced some of the 18 astronauts that the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has chosen to be on the initial team for the early Artemis missions on and around the Moon.
Nine of the astronauts are women, and one of them will most likely be the first woman to step foot on the Moon.
The Moon missions are part of President Donald Trump’s efforts to restart the nation’s space program after Barack Obama virtually shut it down. Trump also created the United States Space Force, now one of eight U.S. uniformed services.
NASA announced the names of 18 astronauts who will participate in the next big lunar exploration effort. Four of the nine women are in the US military.