Gordon Cooper
Cooper developed Parkinson's disease late in life and at age 77 died from heart failure at his home in Ventura, California on October 4, 2004, the same day SpaceShipOne made its second official qualifying flight and won the Ansari X-Prize.
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Memorial sub-orbital flight
On 29 April 2007 Cooper's ashes (along with those of Star Trek actor James Doohan and 200 others) were launched from New Mexico on a sub-orbital memorial flight by a privately owned Aerospace Spaceloft XL sounding rocket. Although the capsule carrying the ashes fell back earthward as planned it was lost in mountainous landscape. The search was thwarted by bad weather but after a few weeks the capsule was found and the ashes it carried were returned to the families.[6][7]
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Awards and decorations
Cooper received many awards including the Air Force Legion of Merit, the Distinguished Flying Cross with oak leaf clusters, the NASA Exceptional Achievement Medal, the Collier Trophy, the Harmon Trophy, the DeMolay Legion of Honor, the John F. Kennedy Trophy, the Iven C. Kincheloe Award, the University of Hawaii Regents Medal and the Columbus Medal. He was a Master Mason (member of Carbondale Lodge 82 in Carbondale, Colorado) and a 33rd Degree Scottish Rite Mason.
Cooper was a member of several groups and societies including the Society of Experimental Test Pilots, the American Astronautical Society, Scottish Rite, York Rite, Shriners, Rotary Club, Order of Daedalians, Confederate Air Force and Boy Scouts of America.
Gordon Cooper Technology Center in Shawnee, Oklahoma is named after Cooper.
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Cultural influence
Cooper's accomplishments (along with his widely noted and appealing personality) were depicted in the 1983 film The Right Stuff in which he was portrayed by actor Dennis Quaid. Cooper worked closely with the production company on this project and reportedly, every line uttered by Quaid is attributable to Cooper's recollection. Quaid met with Cooper before the casting call and rapidly learned his mannerisms. Quaid also had his hair cut and dyed to match how the former astronaut's hair looked during the 1950s and 1960s. Cooper was later depicted in the 1998 HBO series From the Earth to the Moon, in which his character was played by Robert C. Treveiler. Cooper appeared as himself in an episode of the television series CHiPs and during the early 1980s made regular call in appearances on Late Night with David Letterman. The Thunderbirds character Gordon Tracy was named after him.
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Quotes
| “ | No bucks, no Buck Rogers! | ” |
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- (This expression about the high level of funding needed for spaceflight was popular among test pilots and astronauts in the United States during the late 1950s and early 1960s)
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| “ | In the early days, there was so little that we knew about space. Every day was an 'oh, gee-whiz day' or big adventure. | ” |
| “ | Who's the best pilot y'ever saw? | ” |
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References and notes
- ^ Gray, Tara, L. Gordon Cooper, Jr., history.nasa.gov, retrieved 20 January 2008
- ^ Wolfe, Tom, The Right Stuff 1979 ISBN 978-0312427566
- ^ a b c space.com, Gordon Cooper Touts New Book Leap of Faith, 30 July 2000, retrieved 20 January 2008
- ^ Wagener, Leon, One Giant Leap, Forge Books, 2004 ISBN 978-0312873431
- ^ Martin, Robert Scott, Gordon Cooper: No Mercury UFO, space.com, 10 September 1999, retrieved 20 January 2008
- ^ uk.reuters.com, Ashes of "Star Trek's" Scotty found after space ride, 18 May 2007, retrieved 20 January 2008
- ^ Sherriff, Lucy, Scotty: ashes located and heading home, 22 May 2007, retrieved 20 January 2008
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External links
- NASA biography for 40th Anniversary of Mercury 7
- Johnson Space Center biography
- Spacefacts biography
- Remembering 'Gordo' – NASA memories of Gordon Cooper
- Interview with Cooper about UFOs and aliens (with much added speculation)
- Space.com article, Pioneering Astronaut Sees UFO Cover-up
- Out of the Blue at the Internet Movie Database
- Gordon Cooper Technology Center
- Gordon Cooper at Find A Grave
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