Science: Robot in Space

The U.S. man-in-space program, Project Mercury, scored its greatest triumph last week, when with infinite precision, the robot-manned Mercury capsule MA4 was boosted into orbit, permitted to circle the earth, then brought down and recovered in good condition. Despite all the excitement stirred up by the short, sub-orbital flights of Astronauts Alan Shepard and Virgil Grissom, last week’s achievement was far more significant.

The Atlas liquid-fuel rocket that put the capsule in orbit had been a cause of concern in Project Mercury because of two disastrous earlier failures. But last week’s Atlas was beefed up for its job, and it performed perfectly; the MA4 accelerated surely into its planned orbit. Strapped in the capsule instead of a man sat an oblong box that performed most of an astronaut’s functions: it consumed oxygen, excreted carbon dioxide and water vapor, and it also talked—feeding the recorded voice of NASA Communications Engineer Howard Kyle into a microphone to test the Mercury communication system. Out of a porthole and periscope peered two cameras. Special instruments recorded the assorted stimuli that would have assaulted a human astro naut: vicious vibration and gut-wrenching G forces. Automatic apparatus controlled the capsule’s flight and descent to earth, just as it would have if a human had been on board.

Simulated Stoic. Around the earth arced MA-4, its simulated astronaut breathing, sweating, and chattering steadily in its recorded voice. Strung around the globe, 18 Mercury radio stations picked up the signals, reported the capsule’s progress. After 88 minutes, when MA4 was nearing Guaymas on the west coast of Mexico, its three retrorockets were fired by a timing device, its speed was cut by 350 m.p.h., and it began a gentle descent toward the dense lower atmosphere.

The planned impact point was 200 miles east of Bermuda, where an array of ships and aircraft waited anxiously. Down curved MA-4, trailing flames, its simulated astronaut stoically suffering 7.8 Gs of deceleration. The tough 6-ft. drogue chute opened first; then the main chute opened and lowered MA4 gently into the Atlantic, 161 miles east of Bermuda and only 39 miles off target. For a vehicle that had been traveling at 17,519 m.p.h., this was good shooting indeed. Aircraft spotted the capsule at once, and the destroyer Decatur raced to pick it up.

No Conference. NASA officials reported that almost everything on the capsule had worked perfectly. One electrical part (an alternator) had misbehaved, but its functions were taken over by a backup duplicate. The oxygen system leaked a little, but not enough to matter. The “man” on board survived the trip, exactly as a human would have, but since he was only a simulated astronaut, he could not hold a press conference.

Vastly cheered by MA-4’s triumph, NASA space engineers feel that a manned orbital flight is now all but accomplished. Within weeks, they will probably make final tests by putting a chimpanzee into orbit. If the chimp fares well, a human astronaut may follow before the end of the year.