Featured Article Summary #49

Alan Shepard was an American astronaut, naval aviator, test pilot, and businessman. He became the second person to travel into space and the first American in 1961. Ten years later, at age 47, he became the fifth and oldest person to walk on the Moon. Shepard was a graduate of the United States Naval Academy and saw action during World War II. He was selected as one of the original NASA Mercury Seven astronauts and made the first crewed Mercury flight in 1961. Shepard also commanded the Apollo 14 mission in 1971 and was the only one of the Mercury Seven astronauts to walk on the Moon. He retired from the Navy and NASA in 1974. Alan Shepard was born in New Hampshire to parents who were descendants of Mayflower passenger Richard Warren. His father worked in a bank and served in the military during both World Wars. Shepard attended school in Derry, where he excelled academically and developed a passion for flight. He eventually graduated from the Naval Academy and became engaged to Louise Brewer. After serving on the destroyer USS Cogswell in the Pacific Ocean, Shepard returned to the United States to marry his wife, Louise. He then rejoined the Cogswell and served as a gunnery officer, engaging kamikazes in the Battle of Okinawa and participating in naval bombardments of Japan. Shepard later attended flight training and became a pilot, flying the Vought F4U Corsair and conducting tests for the United States Naval Test Pilot School. He also served as an instructor and graduated from the Naval War College before becoming an Aircraft Readiness Officer. In response to the Soviet Union's launch of Sputnik 1, President Eisenhower launched the Space Race and created NASA. NASA's first initiative was Project Mercury, which aimed to launch a man into Earth orbit and evaluate his capabilities in space. NASA recruited its first astronauts, including Alan Shepard, from the ranks of military test pilots. Shepard and six others were chosen out of a group of 32 candidates, and they were announced at a press conference in April 1959. Alan Shepard faced intense competition from his fellow astronauts, particularly John Glenn. After being chosen for the first American crewed mission into space, Shepard flew the Mercury-Redstone 3 mission on May 5, 1961, becoming the second person and the first American to travel into space. Shepard named his spacecraft Freedom 7 and stayed on a suborbital trajectory for a 15-minute flight, reaching an altitude of 101.2 nmi before splashing down in the Atlantic Ocean. He was celebrated as a national hero and received numerous honors and awards for his achievement.