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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Why is Chris Kraft furious with the astronaut?

2. What happens in Washington at about the same time as Yeager is taxiing down the runway for his test flight?

3. How long is Cooper's flight?

4. On the space flight, what becomes a major issue for the astronaut?

5. What are Gordon Cooper's and Deke Slayton's roles during the launch?

Short Essay Questions

1. For the third space flight, the astronaut's wife decided to write her own story for Life magazine. The magazine rents her a "safe house" to watch the launch from so no one knows where she and her children are. Why does this action upset Shorty Powers?

2. When urination had been a problem in the procedures trainer, what had some of the astronauts done out of necessity and what are the dangers involved in a real-world situation?

3. Why does Walter Cronkite tell the American people that he is afraid that we may have lost an astronaut?

4. In Chapter 15, what does John Glenn argue with James Webb about?

5. What is the general assumption regarding why the capsule's hatch blew before the helicopter hooks on?

6. Why is there a certain danger in scrapping the Redstone rocket in favor of the Atlas rockets?

7. Why are the American politicians and reporters alarmed by the Russian's flight?

8. What reaction does the American public have to the chimpanzee's flight?

9. The seven original Mercury astronauts receive the Iven C. Kincheloe Award for outstanding professional performance in the conduct of test flight from the Society for Experimental Test Pilots. What does receiving this award mean to the astronauts?

10. Why does the next group of astronauts selected contain fourteen trainees instead of the intended eleven trainees?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Wally Schirra's Mercury flight came to be known as the "textbook" flight. Scott Carpenter's flight was not.

a. Identify three differences between the two flights that led to this distinction.

b. Describe how the pilot's personalities affected the outcome of the two flights.

c. From watching Carpenter's flight and learning from Carpenter's actions, Schirra insisted on one specific change from Carpenter's flight to his. What was the change? Why was it important?

Essay Topic 2

Once the astronauts were selected for Project Mercury, they were no longer military fighter pilots. They became sought-after public figures and national heroes.

a. How did this change their behavior patterns, if at all?

b. What impact did this change have on their families, if any?

Essay Topic 3

At various times during the lifespan of Project Mercury, there are opposing interests as to the policies and priorities of NASA and the astronauts. Describe the struggle for leadership between the following men.

a. John Kennedy and James Webb?

b. John Glenn and John Kennedy?

c. James Webb and John Glenn?

(see the answer keys)

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