The Beach Abort was an unmanned test in NASA's Project Mercury, of the Mercury spacecraft Launch Escape System. Objectives of the test were a performance evaluation of the escape system, the parachute and landing system, and recovery operations in an off-the-pad abort situation.. The test took place at NASA's Wallops Island, Virginia, test facility on May 9, 1960. In the test, the Mercury spacecraft and its Launch Escape System were fired from the ground level. The flight lasted 1-minute 16 seconds and reached an apogee of 2,465 feet (750 m) and a range of 0.6 mile (0.96 km). A Marine Corps helicopter recovered the spacecraft 17 minutes later. Top speed was a velocity of 976 mph (1,571 km/h). The test was considered a success, although there was insufficient separation distance when the tower jettisoned. Mercury spacecraft # 1, the first spacecraft off McDonnell's production line was used in this test. Payload 1,154 kg. Mercury program insignia File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... May 9 is the 129th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (130th in leap years). ... 1960 (MCMLX) was a leap year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1960 calendar). ... This article needs to be wikified. ... May 9 is the 129th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (130th in leap years). ... 1960 (MCMLX) was a leap year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1960 calendar). ... A sub-orbital spaceflight (or sub-orbital flight) is a spaceflight that does not involve putting a vehicle into orbit. ... Mercury Spacecraft Beach Abort test. ... Mercury Spacecraft Beach Abort test. ... Example of the Mercury spacecraft launch escape system operation. ... Example of the Mercury spacecraft launch escape system operation. ... Project Mercury was the United States first successful manned spaceflight program. ... May 9 is the 129th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (130th in leap years). ... 1960 (MCMLX) was a leap year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1960 calendar). ...
Mercury spacecraft # 1 is currently displayed at the New York Hall of Science, Corona Park, NY. It is displayed on an Atlas rocket.[1]
References
↑ Mercury spacecraft # 1 display page on A Field Guide to American Spacecraft website.
This flight, a repeat of the Little Joe 1 (LJ-1) launch, was to test a launch abort under high aerodynamic load conditions.
After lift-off, the pressure sensing system was to indicate when the correct abort dynamic pressure was reached.
The motor was ignited, but it took a number of seconds to build up thrust, and thus the abort maneuver was not accomplished at the desired dynamic pressure.
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