Exploring the Unknown: Selected Documents in ... - The Black Vault

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First Steps into Space: Projects Mercury and Gemini
science advisor Jerome Wiesner to National Security Advisor McGeorge Bundy, suggests that
JFK revise that earlier decision and allow civilians to become astronauts. This plea became
policy in 1962, when NASA chose its second groups of astronauts and for the first time
civilians were selected for the position. The memorandum also discusses the then-controversial
question of live television coverage on the initial Mercury suborbital launch.
MEMORANDUM FOR DR. BUNDY
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
March 9, 1961
SUBJECT: Some Aspects of Project Mercury
We have an ad hoc panel which is making a technical review of the
National Aeronautics and Space Administration project to put a man in an earth
orbit, Project Mercury. The time is now nearing when man will be first introduced
into the system in a sub-orbital launch using a modified Redstone booster.
Although the interest of the panel is primarily in the technical details, two phases
of the operation which fall mostly outside the technical area have caused them
considerable questioning, and I would like to take this opportunity to bring them
to your attention.
1. Many persons involved in the project have expressed anxiety over
the mounting pressures of the press and TV for on-the-spot coverage of the first
manned launch. Our panel is very concerned that every precaution should be
taken to prevent this operation from becoming a Hollywood production, because
it can jeopardize the success of the entire mission. The people in the blockhouse
and in the control center are not professional actors, but are technically trained
people involved in a very complex and highly coordinated operation. The effect
of TV cameras staring down their throats during this period of extreme tension,
whether taped or live, could have a catastrophic effect. Similarly, following a
manned launch and recovery, the astronaut must be held in a confined area for a
considerable time period so that the doctors can accomplish the debriefing which
will produce the basic information on possible effects of space flight on man. The
pressures from the press during this time period will probably be staggering, but
should be met with firmness. The experience with the RB-47 pilots has proven
that this can be accomplished. [2]
Our panel does not profess to be expert in the field of public relations,
but the overriding need for the safety of the astronaut and the importance to our
nation of a successful mission make them feel that the technical operation should
have first consideration in this program. The sub-orbital launch will, in fact, be
man’s first venture into space. It is enough different from the X15 program to
require special consideration. It is my personal opinion that in the imagination
of many, it will be viewed in the same category as Columbus’ discovery of the
new world. Thus, it is an extremely important venture and should be exploited
properly by the Administration.