Alan Shepard – Spaceflight Now

June 19, 2021

Breaking News

[ June 17, 2021 ] SpaceX launches first national security mission on reused commercial rocket Mission Reports
[ June 17, 2021 ] Chinese astronauts enter Tiangong space station for first time Mission Reports
[ June 17, 2021 ] Live coverage: SpaceX launches GPS satellite for U.S. Space Force Falcon 9
[ June 16, 2021 ] Live coverage: China launches first crew to new space station Mission Reports
[ June 16, 2021 ] U.S. Space Force clears reused SpaceX rocket for launch with GPS satellite Falcon 9

55 years ago today: America entered human spaceflight arena

May 5, 2016

The U.S. launched its first man into space on this date, May 5, 1961, as Alan Shepard rode the Freedom 7 capsule on a 15-minute suborbital flight to 116.5 miles in altitude and 303 miles downrange to splashdown.