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Mercury-Redstone Launch Vehicle

Mercury-Redstone was NASA's crew-rated, single-stage adaptation of the Redstone ballistic missile and the first U.S. crewed launch vehicle. The Army Ballistic Missile Agency and later Marshall Space Flight Center developed the launcher, while Chrysler was prime contractor for production and Rocketdyne supplied its A-7 engine. Six flight boosters supported qualification, the suborbital flight of chimpanzee Ham, and the first two U.S. human spaceflights from 1960 to 1961.

Mercury-Redstone Launch Vehicle
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Identity

Aliases
RedstoneMercury RedstoneMercury-Redstone Launch VehicleMRLV
Family Name
Mercury-Redstone
Full Name
Mercury-Redstone Launch Vehicle
Status
retired
Type
rocket
Variant Name
Mercury-Redstone

Details

Description
Mercury-Redstone was NASA's crew-rated, single-stage adaptation of the Redstone ballistic missile and the first U.S. crewed launch vehicle. The Army Ballistic Missile Agency and later Marshall Space Flight Center developed the launcher, while Chrysler was prime contractor for production and Rocketdyne supplied its A-7 engine. Six flight boosters supported qualification, the suborbital flight of chimpanzee Ham, and the first two U.S. human spaceflights from 1960 to 1961.
Dimensions
Diameter
…
Height
…
First Flight Year
1,960
Last Flight Year
1,961
Operator
Parent Vehicle Family
Propulsion Configurations
  • Entries
    • Count
      1
      Placement
      core
      Propulsion System
      Role
      main
      Variant Notes
      Migrated from legacy reference "Rocketdyne NAA 75-110 A-7" without inventing a more precise installation.
Rocket Specs
Liftoff Mass
…
Reusability
expendable
Stages Count
1

Links

Assets & Meta

Creation Time
July 13, 2026 at 10:15:48 UTC
Updated Time
July 29, 2026 at 15:39:20 UTC