{"product_id":"wally-schirra-mercury-medical-report-11257","title":"Wally Schirra Mercury medical report 1961 - signed","description":"\u003ch2\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWALLY SCHIRRA 1961 MEDICAL RECOMMENDATION FOR FLYING DUTY\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003e\u003cspan\u003eFrom the Personal Collection of Mercury Astronaut Physician Dr. William K. Douglas\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003e\u003cspan\u003eTwo-Page Original Document • Douglas Signature • Carbon-Copy Schirra Signature\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"isSelectedEnd\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAn important original medical document from the formative days of \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eProject Mercury\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, dated \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e29 March 1961\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, recommending future Mercury astronaut \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWalter “Wally” Schirra Jr.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e for continued flying duty.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"isSelectedEnd\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe two-page document comes directly from the personal collection of \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eDr. William K. Douglas\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, the U.S. Air Force physician assigned as personal flight surgeon to NASA’s original Mercury astronauts. Douglas worked closely with the Mercury Seven, overseeing their health, aviation fitness and medical preparation during America’s first human-spaceflight program. NASA oral-history testimony identifies Douglas as the astronauts’ personal physician and flight surgeon during this pioneering period.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"isSelectedEnd\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe reverse of one sheet is personally signed by \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eDr. William K. Douglas\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e. The first page bears \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWally Schirra’s name and signature reproduced as part of the original carbon-copy process\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e. It should therefore be described as a contemporary carbon-copy signature rather than as a separately hand-applied autograph.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003e\u003cspan\u003eA Document from the Eve of Human Spaceflight\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"isSelectedEnd\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe date—29 March 1961—gives the document exceptional historical context.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"isSelectedEnd\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAt that moment, no human being had yet traveled into space. Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin would make the first human orbital flight only two weeks later, on \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e12 April 1961\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, and Alan Shepard would become the first American in space aboard Freedom 7 on \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e5 May 1961\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e. Project Mercury was still preparing to answer fundamental questions about whether astronauts could safely withstand launch, weightlessness, reentry and recovery.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"isSelectedEnd\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eMedical certification for flying duty was therefore far more than routine paperwork. The Mercury astronauts remained active military test pilots and regularly flew high-performance aircraft as part of their training, transportation and proficiency requirements. Maintaining official flight status was essential to their professional duties and reflected the demanding medical standards applied to the nation’s first astronaut corps.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003e\u003cspan\u003eDr. William K. Douglas and the Mercury Seven\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"isSelectedEnd\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eDr. William K. Douglas was selected in 1959 to serve as personal physician to the seven astronauts chosen for Project Mercury:\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"isSelectedEnd\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eScott Carpenter\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eL. Gordon Cooper Jr.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eJohn H. Glenn Jr.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eVirgil “Gus” Grissom\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWalter “Wally” Schirra Jr.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAlan B. Shepard Jr.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eDonald “Deke” Slayton\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"isSelectedEnd\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eUnlike physicians who saw the astronauts only during formal examinations, Douglas developed a close working relationship with the group. His responsibilities extended across routine medical care, aviation fitness, training support and the specialized physiological demands of early spaceflight.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"isSelectedEnd\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eA recommendation bearing Douglas’s signature and originating from his personal files provides a direct connection to the medical infrastructure that supported America’s first astronaut team.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWally Schirra’s Mercury Career\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"isSelectedEnd\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWally Schirra was selected as one of NASA’s original seven astronauts in April 1959. A U.S. Navy test pilot, he contributed to the development of Mercury’s life-support systems, pressure suit and spacecraft controls before receiving his own flight assignment.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"isSelectedEnd\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eOn \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e3 October 1962\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, Schirra piloted \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eMercury-Atlas 8\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, naming his spacecraft \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan\u003eSigma 7\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e. During the nine-hour mission, he completed six Earth orbits and carried out a disciplined engineering evaluation of the Mercury spacecraft. The flight was widely regarded as one of the program’s most precise and technically successful missions.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"isSelectedEnd\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eSchirra later became the only astronaut to fly in all three of America’s pioneering crewed spacecraft programs:\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"isSelectedEnd\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eMercury — Sigma 7\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eGemini — Gemini 6A\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eApollo — Apollo 7\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"isSelectedEnd\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eHe commanded Apollo 7 in October 1968, the first crewed Apollo mission and the flight that returned American astronauts to space following the Apollo 1 tragedy.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003e\u003cspan\u003eHistorical and Collecting Significance\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"isSelectedEnd\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThis document combines several notable qualities:\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul data-spread=\"false\"\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eOriginal two-page medical recommendation for flying duty\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan\u003eDated \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e29 March 1961\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eCreated before the first human and American spaceflights\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eDirectly associated with Mercury astronaut Wally Schirra\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePersonally signed by Mercury flight surgeon Dr. William K. Douglas\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eContemporary carbon-copy reproduction of Schirra’s signature\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eProvenance from Douglas’s personal collection\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eDirect connection to the medical supervision of the Mercury Seven\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"isSelectedEnd\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eOriginal medical and administrative documents relating to the Mercury astronauts offer an unusually personal view of the early space program. They document the essential behind-the-scenes work required to keep the astronauts medically qualified and operationally ready during one of the most intense periods in aviation and spaceflight history.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"isSelectedEnd\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eA significant artifact for an advanced collection devoted to \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eProject Mercury, Wally Schirra, aerospace medicine, astronaut training or the origins of the United States human-spaceflight program\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eCondition:\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e Two original vintage sheets dated 29 March 1961. One sheet is signed on the reverse by Dr. William K. Douglas; the first page displays Schirra’s signature through the original carbon-copy process. Please examine the accompanying photographs for the exact wording, annotations, folds and overall condition.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Been in Space","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":58254420279560,"sku":"11257","price":225.0,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1490\/3832\/files\/11257.jpg?v=1784304481","url":"https:\/\/www.beeninspace.com\/products\/wally-schirra-mercury-medical-report-11257","provider":"BEEN IN SPACE","version":"1.0","type":"link"}