Mercury-Redstone 1

Mercury-Redstone 1
	MR-1 launching the escape rocket.
Mission type	Test flight
Operator	NASA
Mission duration	2 seconds; Launch failure and failed to orbit
Apogee	4 inches (10 cm)
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft	Mercury No.2
Manufacturer	McDonnell Aircraft
Launch mass	1,230 kilograms (2,720 lb)
Start of mission
Launch date	November 21, 1960, 14:00 UTC
Rocket	Redstone MRLV MR-1
Launch site	Cape Canaveral LC-5
	Project Mercury Mercury-Redstone 1A →

Mercury-Redstone 1 (MR-1) was the first Mercury-Redstone uncrewed flight test in Project Mercury and the first attempt to launch a Mercury spacecraft with the Mercury-Redstone Launch Vehicle. Intended to be an uncrewed sub-orbital spaceflight, it was launched on November 21, 1960 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida. The launch failed in an abnormal fashion: immediately after the Mercury-Redstone rocket started to move, it shut itself down and settled back on the pad, after which the capsule jettisoned its escape rocket and deployed its recovery parachutes. The failure has been referred to as the "four-inch flight", for the approximate distance traveled by the launch vehicle.^[2]

^ Korando, R. D. (February 6, 1961). Mercury Capsule No. 2 Configuration Specification (Mercury-Redstone No. 1) (PDF). St. Louis, Missouri: McDonnell Aircraft Corporation. pp. 7–9. Report number NASA-CR-137390.
^ "MR-1: The Four-Inch Flight", p. 293.

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[1] Korando, R. D. (February 6, 1961). Mercury Capsule No. 2 Configuration Specification (Mercury-Redstone No. 1) (PDF). St. Louis, Missouri: McDonnell Aircraft Corporation. pp. 7–9. Report number NASA-CR-137390.

[3] "MR-1: The Four-Inch Flight", p. 293.

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