Beach Abort
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| Mission Insignia | |
|---|---|
| |
| Mission Statistics | |
| Mission Name: | Beach Abort |
| Call Sign: | Beach Abort |
| Number of Crew Members: | 0 |
| Launch: | May 9, 1960 Wallops Island |
| Landing: | May 9, 1960 |
| Duration: | 1 min 31 s |
| Number of Orbits: | suborbital |
| Apogee: | 0.5 mi 0.8 km |
| Distance Traveled: | 1 mi 1.6 km |
| Maximum velocity: | 976 mph 1,570 km/h |
| Peak acceleration: | ? g |
| Mass: | 1,007 kg |
| Beach Abort | |
Missing image Beach_Abort.jpg Mercury Beach Abort test. (NASA)  |
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 spacecraft # 1 is currently displayed at the New York Hall of Science, Corona Park, NY. It is displayed on an Atlas rocket. Mercury spacecraft # 1 display page on A Field Guide to American Spacecraft website. (http://aesp.nasa.okstate.edu/fieldguide/pages/mercury/ba.html)
Reference
- This New Ocean: A History of Project Mercury - NASA SP-4201 (http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/SP-4201/cover.htm)
- NASA NSSDC Master Catalog (http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/sc-query.html)
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