Gus Grissom facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Virgil I. Grissom |
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_Grissom_portrait.jpg) |
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| NASA astronaut | |
| Nationality | American |
| Status | Deceased |
| Born | April 3, 1926 Mitchell, Indiana, U.S. |
| Died | January 27, 1967 (aged 40) Cape Canaveral, Florida, U.S. |
| Other occupation | Test pilot |
| Rank | Lieutenant Colonel, USAF |
| Time in space | 5 hours, 7 minutes |
| Selection | Group 1 (1959) |
| Missions | Mercury-Redstone 4, Gemini 3, Apollo 1 |
| Mission insignia |    |
Virgil Ivan "Gus" Grissom (April 3, 1926 – January 27, 1967) was an American test pilot and astronaut. He was one of the original seven astronauts selected for NASA's Project Mercury in April 1959.
On July 21, 1961, Grissom flew into space in the Liberty Bell 7 spacecraft. This was powered by a Redstone rocket. Grissom was the second American in space, following Alan Shepard.
He made another space flight as command pilot (pilot in charge) of Gemini 3. This was the first trip by astronauts in NASA's Project Gemini. The trip took place on March 23, 1965.
Grissom died along with fellow astronauts Ed White and Roger Chaffee during a test for the Apollo 1 mission at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (then known as Cape Kennedy), Florida. He was the first of the Mercury Seven to die.
Images for kids
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Grissom in the United States Air Force
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Grissom (far left) with fellow Project Mercury astronauts and a model of the Atlas rocket, July 12, 1962
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Grissom in front of the Liberty Bell 7 spacecraft
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Liberty Bell 7, recovered in 1999, was restored and is currently displayed at the Cosmosphere in Hutchinson, Kansas
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Grissom's and Roger Chaffee's headstones during the NASA Day of Remembrance ceremony in 2013
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Grissom's Project Mercury spacesuit on display at the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame
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Grissom in his Mercury spacesuit
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Grissom's name with Roger Chaffee's and Ed White's on the Space Mirror Memorial
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Launch Complex 34 plaque
