OTD…June 5 and STS-40

The final manned Mercury mission was launched atop an Atlas rocket on this day in 1963 with Gordon Cooper aboard Faith 7 for a 34-hour, 22-orbit flight.

Apollo 16 launched to the Descartes Highlands of the moon on this day in 1972 with John Young, Charlie Duke and Ken Mattingly.

#OTD in 1999…Columbia launched with the first woman commander and the Chandra X-ray Observatory