The seven original Mercury astronauts
SCOTT CARPENTER
Born: May 1, 1925, in Boulder, Colo.
Before NASA: Specialized in electronics. Flew anti-sub missions in the Korean War.
Mercury flight: Circled the Earth three times amid technical and procedural glitches.
After Mercury: Never flew again.
Died: 2013, after a stroke. He was 88.
GORDON COOPER
Born: March 6, 1927, in Shawnee, Okla.
Before NASA: Air Force pilot based in Europe.
Mercury flight: The final Mercury flight, which was a 34-hour endurance test.
After Mercury: Commanded Gemini 5 in August 1965.
Died: 2004, from heart failure after a long battle with Parkinson’s disease. He was 77.
JOHN GLENN
Born: July 18, 1921, in Cambridge, Ohio
Before NASA: Was a decorated Marine pilot in Korea and set a transcontinental air speed record in 1957.
Mercury flight: The first orbital mission on Feb. 20, 1962.
After Mercury: Left NASA and served four terms in the U.S. Senate. Flew on the space shuttle in 1998 at age 77.
Died: Thursday
GUS GRISSOM
Born: April 3, 1926, in Mitchell, Ind.
Before NASA: Won a Distinguished Flying Cross for combat missions over Korea.
Mercury flight: Second suborbital mission on July 21, 1961.
After Mercury: Commanded the first Gemini mission in March 1965.
Died: In the Apollo 1 launch pad fire in January 1967. He was 40.
WALLY SCHIRRA
Born: March 12, 1923, in Hackensack, N.J.
Before NASA: Flew 90 combat missions over Korea.
Mercury flight: Orbited the Earth six times in the third orbital mission.
After Mercury: Commanded Gemini 6 and the first manned Apollo mission, Apollo 7.
Died: 2007, from a heart attack due to cancer of the mesothelium. He was 84.
ALAN SHEPARD
Born: Nov. 18, 1923, in East Derry, N.H.
Before NASA: Decorated carrier-based Navy pilot.
Mercury flight: The first suborbital mission on May 5, 1961.
After Mercury: Walked on the moon as commander of Apollo 14 in 1971.
Died: 1998, from leukemia. He was 74.
DEKE SLAYTON
Born: March 1, 1924, in Sparta, Wis.
Before NASA: Flew bomber missions over Europe in World War II.
Mercury flight: Was grounded becasue of an erratic heartbeat.
After Mercury: Served as chief astronaut and then director of flight crew operations. At age 51, flew on the Apollo-Soyuz link-up mission in 1975.
Died: 1993, from brain cancer. He was 69.