Page:Project Mercury - A Chronology.pdf/54

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Part II — Research and Development Phase of Project Mercury
37

1959 (Cont.)

January 16

project director, considered that for safety purposes, both should be used. He also felt that the recovery landing bag should be replaced by a honeycombed crushable structure. At this same meeting, a tentative decision was also made that design, development, and contract responsibilities for the Mercury tracking network would be assigned to the Langley Research Center.[1]

January 21

The screening of records for prospective astronauts began.[2]

January 23

Funds in the amount of $1,556,200 were made available to the Langley Research Center for the Little Joe development program. The remaining funds of total program costs ($3,946,000) had already been made available to Langley in a previous transfer of funds.[3]

January 25

The pilot egress trainer was received from McDonnell and rough water evaluation of the equipment was started immediately by Space Task Group personnel. (See Figure 4.)[4]

Figure 4.—Pilot Egress Trainer.

  1. Memo, George Low to NASA Administrator, subject: Status Report No. 5, Project Mercury, Jan. 20, 1959.
  2. Memo, Warren J. North, to NASA Administrator, subject: Background of Project Mercury Schedules, Aug. 14, 1960.
  3. Memo, George Low, to Dr. Silverstein, subject: Fund Transfer to Langley Research Center for Little Joe Program, Jan. 23, 1959.
  4. NASA Space Task Group, Project Mercury [Quarterly] Status Report No. 1 for Period Ending January 31, 1959, March 1959.