Space's Deepest Secrets

Narrator: Space...

The last great unknown.

NASA's mission...

To unravel the mysteries

of mankind's final frontier...

To search for new knowledge

and understanding...

- Man: - Godspeed, John Glenn.

...and to lead us

towards a peaceful

and unified future in space.

- President Kennedy: To the moon - and to the planets beyond.

- Armstrong: - The eagle has landed.

Narrator: We applaud

NASA's greatest achievements

and explore how their impacts

continue to shape how we view

our place in the universe.

- Armstrong: - That's one small step for man,

one giant leap for mankind.

- President Kennedy: - For the eyes of the world...

- Man: - Absolutely incredible.

...now look into space...

- Man #2: - Okay, here we go.

...to the moon

and to the planets beyond.

Man #3: Lift-off.

And we set sail on this new sea

to solve these mysteries,

to solve them

for the good of all mankind.

Narrator: 1957 heralds

the unprecedented orbit

of the sputnik satellite,

launched by the Soviet union.

This milestone

sends waves of fear

throughout the U.S. government

- about - the technological superiority

of their cold war enemy.

Shortly thereafter,

a federal organization

whose sole purpose

is spearheading the American

space effort is born...

The national aeronautics

and space administration,

known as NASA.

Despite its cold war Genesis,

NASA is

a distinctly civilian agency

with a focus

on the peaceful exploration

of space and science.

Baker: President Eisenhower

wanted a space program

for science and technology

that was not based on the

military occupation of space.

And his emblem

was space for peace.

He was deeply concerned that

if left to their own devices,

the military would occupy space

and take the high ground.

Had that occurred,

you would never have seen

any of the great accomplishments

in science or engineering

that embraced the world.

Narrator: Thanks to Eisenhower’s

forward-thinking administration,

NASA remains the world's leading

manned-and-unmanned-

space-research agency

since its inception

in the late 1950s,

setting the precedent

for all present

and future spacefaring nations.

Man:

Ladies and gentlemen,

today we are introducing to you

and to the world

these seven men

who have been selected

to begin training

for orbital space flight.

These, ladies and gentlemen, are

the nation's Mercury astronauts.

Narrator:

On April 9, 1959,

NASA introduces the world

to the Mercury seven...

The astronauts selected

to pilot America's

first manned space program.

These men immediately become

national heroes.

Project Mercury's first goal

is to put a solo human

into earth's orbit...

Which is named freedom 7.

Freedom 7 was America's first

foray into human space flight,

and it came at a rather

difficult period in time,

because three weeks

before the launch of freedom 7,

Russia had successfully launched

Yuri Gagarin,

who became

the first human in space.

Narrator: From the Mercury

seven, astronaut Alan Shepard

is chosen to become the first

American to fly in space.

He pilots the Mercury-Redstone

launch vehicle,

a hybrid

of a U.S. army ballistic missile

- and a research and development - rocket

modified for human flight.

And on may 5, 1961,

Shepard leaves cape Canaveral

and leads the United States

into a new era

of manned space exploration.

Flight, this is m&o.

Man: Go ahead, m&o.

All subsystems status green.

- Roger, m&o. - Understand all systems green.

- Man #2: - 60 seconds and counting.

Man #3: T-minus one minute

and counting.

- -Status check... pressurization. - -Go.

- Lox tanking. - You are go.

- Water systems. - -Go.

T-minus 30 seconds.

Mercury capsule, go.

- All pre-start panel lights - are correct.

The ready light is on.

T-minus 15 seconds.

Check Mercury umbilical.

- Man #5: - Mercury umbilical clear.

- Mercury is entering - flight zone.

T-minus 10, 9, 8, 7...

6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.

Engine start.

Ignition.

Well, Roger. Lift-off,

and the clock has started.

This is freedom 7

reading you loud and clear.

The fuel is go.

1.2 G.

Cabin at 14 psi.

Oxygen is go.

All systems are go.

Flight lasts 15 minutes

and follows

a parabolic trajectory,

arcing over the earth's surface

to land in the ocean

302 miles downrange.

The main scientific objective

of project Mercury

is to determine man's capability

in the space environment

and the conditions under

which astronauts would work.

In contrast

to Yuri Gagarin's flight,

which was effectively

an automated flight...

Gagarin had the ability

to control the spacecraft,

but didn't...

Shepard's flight allowed him

to exercise some control

over the spacecraft.

Man: He's going

to hand-control movements now.

Switching to manual control

of the pitch attitude.

So Shepard genuinely took

real control of the spacecraft.

He wasn't just there

for the ride.

He wasn't simply baggage.

Narrator: After re-entry,

the capsule of freedom 7

lands by parachute

in the Atlantic ocean,

with Alan Shepard paving the way

for every NASA astronaut

and manned mission to come.

Baker: The initial

Mercury manned space flight

certainly helped lift