Oct 23 1961
From The Space Library
The Freedom 7 Mercury capsule in which Alan B. Shepard, Jr., made the first suborbital space flight, was presented to the National Air Museum of the Smithsonian Institution. In his presentation, NASA Administrator Webb said: "To Americans seeking answers, proof that man can survive in the hostile realm of space is not enough. A solid and meaningful foundation for public support and the basis for our Apollo man-in-space effort is that U.S. astronauts are going into space to do useful work in the cause of all their fellow men." "Such flights as those of Freedom 7 are not stunts. They are not antithetical to sober scientific and technological research. Interpreted properly, these dramatic events can add much to public understanding and excite creative interest in extending the base on which public support must rest." NASA announced that it had ordered 14 additional Delta launch vehicles (Douglas Thor first stage, Aerojet-General AJ10-118 second stage, and Allegheny Ballistics Laboratory third stage) for Relay, Syncom, Telstar, and Tiros satellites. Five of the first six of the twelve Deltas successfully launched [Echo I]], Tiros II and III, and Explorers X and XII.
Ranger launching again postponed at Atlantic Missile Range because of technical difficulties.
Cleveland extension (SNPO—C) of the joint AEC-NASA Space Nuclear Propulsion Office (SNPO) activated, located on Lewis Research Center and headed by John L. Wilson.
USAF Discoverer XXXIII failed to achieve polar orbit.
First underwater launching of Navy Polaris A-2, and first firing from submarine, U.S.S. Ethan Allen.
AEC announced that the Soviet Union had detonated a thermonuclear bomb with a 30-megaton yield as well as a small underwater nuclear device. These were the 22d and 23d Soviet nuclear tests reported by AEC.
Marshal R. Y. Malinovsky, Soviet Defense Minister, announced that the U.S.S.R. had solved the problem of antimissile defense (a statement later qualified in retranslation).
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