Everything you never knew you wanted to know about the Mercury Project
Escape and jettison rocket systems
From RixWiki
This article is organized like the Escape and Jettison Rocket Systems section of the SEDR-104 Mercury familiarization manual except that the descriptions of the variations for the test capsules have been incorporated into the relevant sections.
Contents |
System Description
Jettison Rocket
The jettison rocket was originally designed with a single nozzle. After the beach abort test it was determined that not enough separation distance between the escape tower and the spacecraft was obtained, and the design was changed to one using three nozzles. This revised design was used for the rest of the program.
Escape System
Markings
Fig. 1 shows the escape tower and motor from the LJ-1 mission. Note the large Grand Central Rocket logo on the main escape motor body near the bottom. There is also a similar smaller logo near the top of the nozzle closest to the camera. Figs. 2 and 3 show similar markings on the escape motor for the MA-6 mission. The bands at the bottom of the escape motor nozzles in this picture appear to be the tops of removeable protective covers over the nozzles.
