Man in Space Soonest

The Man In Space Soonest (MISS) program was a plan created by the United States Air Force to send a person into outer space before the Soviet Union. This was during an exciting time when countries were racing to achieve new things in space. The goal was to be the first to put a human into space, showing leadership in science and technology.

However, the program was stopped on August 1, 1958, before it could really begin. It was replaced by a new project called Project Mercury, organized by NASA. Even though MISS didn’t continue, two of the people chosen for it eventually did go to space.

The first person from the MISS program to reach space was Joseph A. Walker. He flew in an airplane called the X-15 a few times in 1963, reaching very high altitudes that count as space. Later, Neil Armstrong, another MISS participant, became a NASA astronaut. He flew on missions like Gemini 8 and then made history in 1969 as the first person to step on the Moon during Apollo 11. These achievements showed how important the early space programs were in pushing humans to explore the stars.

Astronaut candidates

The Man In Space Soonest program aimed to send a person into space using a Thor or Atlas rocket. On June 25, 1958, the Air Force picked nine men to be astronauts for this program.

These astronauts included Neil A. Armstrong, who later joined NASA's astronauts and flew on missions like Gemini 8 and Apollo 11, walking on the Moon. Others in the group were William B. Bridgeman, A. Scott Crossfield, Iven C. Kincheloe, John B. McKay, Robert A. Rushworth, Joseph A. Walker, Alvin S. White, and Robert M. White. Joseph Walker was the first to reach space on two X-15 test flights.