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| A MA-6 launch cover from "SpaceCraft" postmarked at Patrick Air Force Base on February 20, 1962, the first US manned orbital flight that carried astronaut John Glenn into space. |
Mercury-Atlas 6 (MA-6) marked the first attempt by the US to put an astronaut into orbit, part of Project Mercury. Launched on February 20, 1962, it completed three Earth orbits under the command of astronaut John Glenn, who became the first American to orbit the planet. The spacecraft, named "Friendship 7," was launched by an Atlas LV-3B rocket from Cape Canaveral, Florida. After 4 hours and 56 minutes in flight, the capsule re-entered the Earth's atmosphere, splashed down in the Atlantic Ocean, and was recovered by the USS NOA (DD-841). Glenn was then transferred by helicopter from the USS Noa to the USS Randolph and flown to Grand Turk for debriefing and a medical check-up, while the capsule was later delivered to Grand Turk by ship.
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| Photo: John Glenn selected as pilot for the first US orbital mission on November 29, 1961. Scott Carpenter was the backup pilot. |
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| Photo: The scene at the MA-6 launch pad in the early hours of February 20, 1962. |
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| Photo: John Glenn suited up in his space suit, preparing for the first American orbital flight in space. |
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| A MA-6 launch cover from "Swanson" featuring a rubber-stamped cachet, postmarked on February 20, 1962, signed by Wernher von Braun, John Glenn, and Hermann Oberth, postmarked at 10 AM to closely coincide with the MA-6 launch time 9:47 AM. |
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| Photo: MA-6 blasts from the launch pad on February 20, 1962, carrying the Mercury capsule with John Glenn inside. |
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A MA-6 launch cover from "SpaceCraft" postmarked at Port Canaveral on February 20, 1962, signed by John Glenn. |
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| Photo: Photographers at Cocoa Beach, Florida, a popular place to watch rocket launches. |
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| A MA-6 launch cover postmarked at Cocoa Beach on February 20, 1962. |
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| Photo: Mercury Control Center at Cape Canaveral. |
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| Photo: Alan Shepard (right), the Mercury Control capsule communicator (CAPCOM) with John Glenn. |
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| Photo: The orbital space flight path of John Glenn on February 20, 1962. |
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| Photo: John Glenn closes his eyes as his spacecraft slows down with the activation of the retrorockets during re-entry into Earth's atmosphere. This photo was captured by an onboard camera. |
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| The "Friendship 7" spacecraft was released off the coast of California and tracked by Point Arguello, part of the Pacific Missile Range, to assist with coordinating its re-entry and splashdown in the Atlantic Ocean. Top: A MA-6 tracking station cover featuring the "Naval Missile Facility POINT ARGUELLO LOMPOC, CALIFORNIA" and "MA-6 RELEASE" rubber stamps, postmarked at Lompoc, California, on February 20, 1962. Bottom: A similar MA-6 release cover from "Goldcraft." |
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| Photo: Crewmen on USS NOA holding a banner to welcome John Glenn aboard. The USS Noa (DD-841) was involved in the recovery of John Glenn and the Friendship 7 capsule because it was a secondary recovery ship stationed near the projected splashdown point in the Atlantic Ocean. Due to the spacecraft landing short of the primary recovery zone, the Noa was the closest vessel to the capsule's actual position. |
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| Photo: Recovery of John Glenn and his capsule by USS NOA. |
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| A MA-6 aerogram addressed to "Mrs. Trudy Woods," postmarked aboard the USS NOA on February 20, 1962, and signed by John Glenn. This variation of the USS NOA postmark featuring a "PM" time slug is exceptionally rare. |
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| Two covers feature the more common USS NOA postmark without the time slug, dated February 20, 1962. A study by Dr. Ross J. Smith suggests that the postmarks applied to these covers may have been backdated. |
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| Photo: John Glenn aboard the USS Noa after his historic spaceflight, is being assisted into a flying suit after being recovered from the Atlantic Ocean. |
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| A MA-6 Captain's Cover from the USS Randolph, postmarked on February 20, 1962. This cover includes a glued cachet of the USS Randolph CVS-15 Space Capsule Recovery Ship, signed by John Glenn and the Commanding Officer, Captain Max Berns - RegencyStamps |
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| Photo: John Glenn waving to the crew members of the USS Randolph after being transferred from the USS NOA. |
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| A MA-6 Crew Cover (Type 2) features a USS Randolph postmark on ship's stationery with a printed Navy Department cachet, dated February 20, 1962. |
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| A MA-6 Crew Cover (Type 3) features a USS Randolph postmark with an unusual "AM" time slug, dated February 20, 1962. |
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| A MA-6 tracking station cover postmarked at Grand Turk Island on February 20, 1962, signed by Joe Frasketi, the producer and servicer of this cover. |
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| Photo: John Glenn greeted by fellow astronauts at Grand Turk Island on February 22, 1962. |
The Post Office issued the "Project Mercury" stamp only after John Glenn safely returned from his orbital flight. It was created in total secrecy in case the mission did not succeed.
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| Photo: A post office staff member released the sale of the "Project Mercury" stamp on February 20, 1962, following the successful splashdown of Glenn's Mercury spacecraft, Friendship 7. |
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| A block of four 4¢ US Project Mercury stamps, with the selvage signed by the stamp designer, Charles R. Chickering. |
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| Blocks of four 4¢ US Project Mercury stamps, with the selvage signed by John Glenn (top) and Wernher von Braun (bottom). - RegencyStamps |
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| Top: A cover featuring a USS NOA postmark of February 20, 1962, applied to a Project Mercury stamp. Signed by John Glenn. Bottom: A cover featuring a USS Randolph postmark of February 20, 1962, applied to a Project Mercury stamp. The postmarks on both covers are considered "backdated" because the Project Mercury stamp was released for sale on February 20, 1962, following the successful completion of Glenn's spaceflight. |
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| A plain first day cover featuring a Project Mercury stamp, postmarked "Cape Canaveral" on February 20, 1962, at 3:30 PM, signed by both John Glenn and Wernher von Braun. At the time of this stamp's release, there was no post office named "Cape Canaveral." The local post offices were known as "Port Canaveral" from 1954 to 1962, before being changed to "Cape Canaveral" on September 1, 1962. |
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| A MA-6 first day cover from "SpaceCraft," featuring a Project Mercury stamp postmarked at Cape Canaveral on February 20, 1962, at 3:30 PM, signed by John Glenn. |
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| A first day cover of Project Mercury stamp, featuring a hand-painted cachet by artist Chris Henderson, depicting John Glenn inside the spacecraft during the Project Mercury mission. |
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| Photo: Astronaut Alan Shepard (on the right) places his hand on the space capsule used for John Glenn's three orbits around Earth. The capsule was returned to the Cape Canaveral Missile Test Center, the original launch site. |
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| A cover associated with the MA-6 recovery mission, postmarked aboard the USS NOA upon its return to port on February 23, 1962, and signed by John Glenn. |
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| Photo: President John F. Kennedy visited the launch area at Cape Canaveral on February 23, 1962, three days after John Glenn's historic orbital flight on February 20, 1962.
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| Photo: John Glenn Receives Key to City at White House Reception from Brigadier General Frederick J. Clarke on February 26, 1962. |
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| Photo: John Glenn and his son, David, listen to a tape recording of the orbital flight. |
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| Photo: John Glenn discovered his desk buried under bags of mail during his first visit to the Space Task Group headquarters on March 5, 1962. |
(Reference from
Mercury-Atlas 6)
