Project Mercury Redstone Flight Plan
Here's a Space Task Group diagram, dated June 10 1959, containing the Mercury-Redstone flight plan.
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Located in the Jacobi Collection, Dept. of Archives/Special
Collections,
M. Louis Salmon Library, University of Alabama in Huntsville.
Scan and assembly by heroicrelics.
Major phases of the flight profile noted on the diagram include
- Capsule separation (from booster)
- Attitude programming by ASCS
- Periscope extended
- Capsule remains in normal orbiting attitude prior to retro-fire
- 30 sec before apogee, capsule starts into retro-firing position. Initiated by preset timer.
- Apogee attitude for retro-fire
- Retros fire, 5 sec intervals
- 10 seconds after retro-firing the automatic stabilization and control system places and maintains the capsule in an entry attitude of -30° which gives a 30° angle-of-attack when .05g is reached on entry into the effective atmosphere. After .05g the ASCS goes to the rate damper mode.
- 30 seconds after apogee capsule starts into entry attitude position
- 65 seconds after apogee capsule in entry attitude position and retro package is jettisoned
- Periscope retracted
- Open parachutes (drogue and main)
- Disengage ASCS
- Extend periscope again