Everything you never knew you wanted to know about the Mercury Project
MR-1A
From RixWiki
Description of Mission
MR-1A was a repeat of the failed MR-1 mission, which failed after the booster shut down after only a few inches of motion. From SP-45 Mercury project summary
Analyses of the cause of malfunction showed the problem to have been caused by failure of two ground umbilicals to separate from the launch vehicle in the proper sequence. In the wrong sequence, one umbilical provided an electrical path from launch-vehicle power through blockhouse ground and the launch-vehicle engine cut-off relay coil to launch-vehicle ground that initiated the cut-off signal. Except for loss of expendable items on the spacecraft, such as the escape system and the parachutes and the peroxide, the spacecraft was in flight condition. The launch vehicle was slightly damaged in the aft section by recontact with the launcher The spacecraft and launch vehicle were demated. The launch vehicle was replaced by another Mercury-Redstone launch vehicle, and the spacecraft was again prepared for its mission. Modifications included a long ground strap that was placed between the launch vehicle and the launcher to maintain electrical ground until umbilicals had been separated. The refurbished spacecraft and new Mercury-Redstone launch vehicle were launched successfully as mission MR-1A on December 19,1960. At this time, all test objectives were met. All major spacecraft systems performed well throughout the flight. The launch-vehicle performance was normal except for a higher than nominal cut-off velocity. The only effects of this anomaly were to increase the range, maximum altitude, and maximum acceleration during reentry. The spacecraft was picked up by a helicopter 15 minutes after landing and was delivered back to the launch site on the morning after the launch. ---
More Information
see: Spacecraft 2A, MR-1
