On May 5, 1961, astronaut Alan Shepard flew aboard the Freedom 7 spacecraft and became the first American in space. His suborbital flight lasted about 15 minutes and reached an altitude of roughly 187 kilometers. Although brief, the mission was a crucial response to the earlier Soviet spaceflight by Yuri Gagarin. Shepard’s success boosted American morale during the Cold War and gave new momentum to the U.S. space program. The mission helped NASA test launch systems, spacecraft performance, and reentry procedures. It was an early step on the path that would eventually lead to Apollo missions and Moon landings.
