"WELL, I WAS SCARED A GOOD PORTION OF THE TIME"

GRISSOM'S LIBERTY BELL 7 SINKS DURING RECOVERY

Washington, D.C. (JFK+50) On July 21, 1961, Liberty Bell 7, a spacecraft piloted by astronaut Gus Grissom*, splashed down in the Atlantic Ocean only to sink during the recovery process.  President John F. Kennedy watched live television coverage at the White House.

While the flight itself was deemed a success, NASA officials were more than concerned about the sinking of Grissom's space capsule.  The capsule was unable to be saved.

At a post-flight press conference, Grissom was asked how he felt during the ordeal, he said...

"Well, I was scared a good portion of the time."

In the afternoon, JFK signed into law HR 6874 authorizing the establishment of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

*Virgil "Gus" Grissom (1926-1967) was born in Mitchell, Indiana & served in the US Army Air Forces during WWII.  After the war, he earned a B.S. in mechanical engineering at Purdue, then re-enlisted in the USAF & served as a fighter pilot in the Korean War.  VGG was chosen as one of the original Mercury 7 astronauts.  He died in the pre-launch test fire of Apollo 1 which took the lives of two of his fellow astronauts.

Astronaut Gus Grissom

Liberty Bell 7

NASA Photo

OPEN SKIES PROPOSALS

IKE PRESENTS OPEN SKIES PROPOSALS AT GENEVA SUMMIT

Geneva, Switzerland (JFK+50) Sixty years ago today, July 21, 1955, President Dwight D. Eisenhower presented his "Open Skies" proposals at the Geneva Summit.

The proposals called for both the United States and Soviet Union to exchange maps detailing the exact location of all military installations. 

They also provided that once the maps were "in hand" both nations could conduct aerial flights over the installations of each others country to make sure they were in compliance with arms control agreements.

According to the National Museum of the United States Air Force, President Eisenhower "reasoned that getting permission to fly over Soviet military facilities while granting permission for the Soviets to overfly U.S. military installations would greatly ease tensions between the superpowers."

The Soviets rejected Ike's proposals which resulted in the continuation of U.S. reconnaissance flights over the U.S.S.R.  In August 1960, however, the first CORONA reconnaissance satellite ended the need for U.S. overflights of the Soviet Union for a period of 30 years.

In 1989, the Open Skies proposal was revived "to allow countries without satellites to get reliable information about military development in other countries."

SOURCE

"Open Skies Proposals," National Museum of the United States Air Force, January 6, 2006, www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/

Dwight D. Eisenhower

Official White House Portrait

LIBERTY BELL 7 SINKS DURING RECOVERY

Washington, D.C. (JFK+50) Fifty-four years ago today, July 21, 1961, Liberty Bell 7, a spacecraft piloted by astronaut Gus Grissom, splashed down in the Atlantic Ocean only to sink during the recovery process.

President John F. Kennedy watched live television coverage at the White House.

While the flight itself was deemed a success, NASA officials were more than concerned about the sinking of Grissom's space capsule.

In the afternoon, JFK signed into law HR 6874 authorizing the establishment of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

Astronaut Gus Grissom

Liberty Bell 7

NASA Photo

LIBERTY BELL 7 SINKS

GUS GRISSOM'S "LIBERTY BELL 7" SINKS

Washington, D.C. (JFK+50) Fifty-three years ago today, July 21, 1961, NASA astronaut Gus Grissom* splashed down safely in the Atlantic Ocean after a sub-orbital space flight but unfortunately his spacecraft, "Liberty Bell 7", sank during the recovery process.

The flight, which had lasted more than 15 minutes, ended on a scary note as the emergency explosive bolts misfired and blew the hatch open.  Grissom was able to escape to safety despite the fact that his spacesuit filled with water.

Attempts to retrieve the "Liberty Bell 7" by helicopter were unsuccessful.

Gus Grissom was the second American astronaut to fly in space and later became the first of the Mercury 7 to do so twice.

President John F. Kennedy watched live television coverage at the White House.

Astronaut Gus Grissom

Liberty Bell 7

NASA Photo

*Virgil Ivan "Gus" Grissom (1926-1967) was born in Mitchell, Indiana.  He received his degree in Mechanical Engineering from Purdue University.

Grissom served in the USAF during the Korean War, earned a degree in Aeromechanics and in 1959 was selected as one of the original "Mercury 7" astronauts.

Gus Grissom died in a tragic fire during a pre-launch test for Apollo 1.

MONKEY BUSINESS COMES TO AN END IN TENNESSEE

Dayton, Tennessee (JFK+50) Rhea County High School science teacher and coach, John Thomas Scopes, was found guilty 89 years ago today, July 21, 1925, of violating Tennessee's Butler Act here in Dayton.

The Butler Act, passed earlier in the year, provided that the teaching of the theory of evolution was illegal in the public schools of the state of Tennessee.

The prosecution of the Scopes case was assisted by three time Democratic presidential nominee William Jennings Bryan who was also a religious fundamentalist.

The defense, sponsored by the American Civil Liberties Union, was provided by Clarence Darrow.

Despite being found guilty, Scopes was fined only $100 and the fine was never paid.  Upon appeal, the guilty plea was reversed due to a technicality.

The Butler Act remained on the statute books of Tennessee until 1967.

Darrow and Bryan

Dayton, Tennessee

July 1925