Mercury-Atlas 9

<p>Mercury-Atlas 9 was the final <a href="/facts/Crewed_space_mission/VgVxsGmq">crewed space mission</a> of the U.S. <a href="/facts/Mercury_program/H8zqFzbC">Mercury program</a>, launched on May 15, 1963, from <a href="/facts/Cape_Canaveral_Air_Force_Station_Launch_Complex_14/LzRNlJAY">Launch Complex 14</a> at <a href="/facts/Cape_Canaveral_Air_Force_Station/dwJ9MCPH">Cape Canaveral</a>, <a href="/facts/Florida/cF245A3Q">Florida</a>. The spacecraft, named <i>Faith 7</i>, completed 22 Earth orbits before splashing down in the <a href="/facts/Pacific_Ocean/bdxgXRVM">Pacific Ocean</a>, piloted by astronaut <a href="/facts/Gordon_Cooper/nracC0cA">Gordon Cooper</a>, then a <a href="/facts/United_States_Air_Force/7MxWBYlc">United States Air Force</a> <a href="/facts/Major_(United_States)/le6LWL3Y">major</a>. The <a href="/facts/Atlas_LV-3B/ufGAcnsB">Atlas</a> rocket was No. 130-D, and the Mercury spacecraft was No. 20. As of June 2025, this mission marks the last time an American was launched alone to conduct an entirely solo orbital mission.
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Mercury-Atlas 9 open-in-new

Mercury-Atlas 9