The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) presents, “America in Space: The First Five Years” (1963), a color short educational film chronicling the planning, testing, and achievements of NASA’s space exploration program in its early stages from 1957-1962.

Official seal of NASA (0:06). Title page, opening credits overlaid distant shot of dome of the United States Capital (0:13). United States Capitol building in Washington, D.C. in background, cars drive in foreground before dawn (0:20). Exterior of NASA headquarters in D.C. (0:35). Rising sun outlines gantries at Cape Canaveral (0:51). Employees arrive at NASA’s launch operation center, still night at other NASA stations on west coast but satellites still record data (0:57). Montage faces of NASA operators sitting in font of control panel with headsets (1:10). Rocket lifts off from launch pad, crowd of spectators look up to sky shielding faces with papers, newspapers, sunglasses (1:19). Front page headlines of international newspapers in Italian, Arabic, French (1:33). Parade through New York City for astronaut John Glenn (1:34). Search and rescue plane scans ocean for debris of returned space vessel (1:47). NASA press conference briefing press/ public on Civilian Space Program (1:55). Footage of 1962 Centaur Rocket Explosion (2:20). Debris from exploded rocket laid out on hangar floor, scientists study debris (2:30). NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, American and foreign scientists work together in labs (2:42). Animation of globe depicting locations of probes, unmanned satellites (3:11). Scientific data transmitted from tracking stations to control centers, data processing systems, matrix of wires (3:28). Footage 1958 launch of Explorer 1 (first satellite) from Cape Canaveral Launch Complex 26 (3:58). Two scientists present space probe Mariner 2 (4:30). Launch of Atlas LV-3 Agena-B carrying Mariner 2 to space, satellite collecting data on planet Venus (4:44). Orbiting Solar Observatories (OSO 1) spins in earth atmosphere (5:09). Radiation emanating from sun’s upper atmosphere (5:18). Sequence shots of bright stars, galaxies, black holes (5:32). Echo 1 balloon satellite in orbit (5:50). Telstar 1 satellite sits wrapped in plastic in lab (6:08). American flag waves on small screen, broadcasting footage across country, changing television and communication (6:24). Syncom 1 launch, NASA scientists gather data from satellite hanging overhead (6:36). Weather satellite TIROS-1 facade and interior details; Weather photos taken by satellite are developed in photo lab (6:58). Boeing B-52 Stratofortress bomber carries X-15 hypersonic rocket-powered research aircraft to altitude, rocket takes off into space, astronaut Joe H. Engle in cockpit (7:22). Project Mercury Training: Astronauts get out of water with scuba tanks on back after skin diving practice (8:00). Astronaut L. Gordon Cooper in course to understand navigating, engineering (8:19). One of the seven astronauts placed in chamber in full suit to experience range of extreme temperatures (8:31). Zero gravity experienced in aircraft (8:54). Mercury space capsule arrives at Cape Canaveral Complex 14, suborbital test flights carried out by Alan B. Shepard, Jr. and Virgil I. Grissom (9:17). Launch of Mercury-Atlas 6 piloted by John Glenn (9:40). Launch of Mercury-Atlas 7 piloted by Scott Carpenter, Carpenter seen receiving medal during ceremony (9:59). Smiling portrait of Wally Schirra, launch of Mercury-Atlas 8 (10:14). Retrieval of Mercury-Atlas 9 and pilot Gordon Cooper from ocean, MA-9 vessel on USS Kearsarge (10:26). Animation depicting goals of moon landing (10:46). Project Gemini: Gemini spacecraft being built and perfected (11:12). Project Apollo: Apollo boilerplate command modules in factory, testing on modules i.e. dropping into water (11:26). Saturn I test launch, NASA scientists celebrate successful launch (11:43). Astronauts who will join original Apollo 7 to arrive at Cape Canaveral (12:09). Narrator closing words while montage clips of launch, astronaut in cockpit plays (12:40). Film ends, closing

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