A mere 50 miles above the Earth is space, and yet it was only 62 years ago that it was the first-time man ventured into outer space and orbit the earth. Of course, as in many of our articles here in the Sunshine Report, there is a New Hampshire connection to those historic moments. In this case, the connection is Alan Shepard – a native of Derry, New Hampshire.
Alan Shepard was born in Derry in 1923 and was always fascinated by flight. Growing up, he would bike 5 to 6 miles to Manchester Airport and do odd jobs in exchange for a ride in a plane. Academically inclined, Shepard skipped several grades, and when World War II broke out, he easily passed the entrance exam to United State Naval Academy and joined the Navy. His time at Annapolis was cut short, as after a month of aviation training, Shepard was assigned to the USS Cogswell in the Pacific as a gunnery officer.
After the war, Shepherd went to flight school but was an average student and was almost dropped from the program. That did not deter him, as he took private lessons to supplement his training and earned his civilian pilot’s license in addition to completing his Naval training. Shephard’s piloting skills continued to improve, and he even became known for his courage and calm demeanor – including the successful completion of daring landings – including multiple landings at night on an aircraft carrier.
By 1950, he was selected to attend the US Naval Test Pilot school and eventually became an instructor. With the race to space ensuing, Shephard’s skill and size made him ideal for the new space program. Even though Shephard was briefed on the hazards and dangers of the program, he still volunteered to proceed with the Mercury space program.
On May 5th, 1961, Shepard was the first American to cross that 50-mile mark into space. But he wasn’t finished, because in 1971 at the age of 47 he commanded the Apollo 14 mission and became the oldest and only one of the Mercury Seven astronauts to walk on the moon. That same year he was promoted to rear admiral, the first astronaut to reach that rank. Proving that with passion and perseverance, you can always go the extra mile – and in the case of Alan Shepard, while also literally ‘reaching for the stars.’
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