Alumnus Scott Carpenter
Boulder, Colorado, US
Alumnus Scott Carpenter
Tagged by: Tagwhat Staff
Scott Carpenter became the second American to orbit the Earth on May 24, 1962 as part of the Mercury space program. He orbited three times before a difficult return.
He was born Malcolm Scott Carpenter on May 1, 1925 in Boulder and lived in New York City until age 2, when his mother became ill with tuberculosis. His grandparents raised him here in a house at Aurora Avenue and 7th Street.
After he graduated from Boulder High School in 1943, Carpenter trained as an aviation cadet in the V-12 Navy College Training Program as part of the war effort. The war ended before he completed training, and the Navy released him. He then came to study aeronautical engineering at CU-Boulder.
Interestingly, he missed his final exam for his senior year heat transfer class and was one requirement short of officially earning his degree. CU chose to award him the degree following his Mercury flight, stating that "His subsequent training as an Astronaut has more than made up for the deficiency in the subject of heat transfer."
He was born Malcolm Scott Carpenter on May 1, 1925 in Boulder and lived in New York City until age 2, when his mother became ill with tuberculosis. His grandparents raised him here in a house at Aurora Avenue and 7th Street.
After he graduated from Boulder High School in 1943, Carpenter trained as an aviation cadet in the V-12 Navy College Training Program as part of the war effort. The war ended before he completed training, and the Navy released him. He then came to study aeronautical engineering at CU-Boulder.
Interestingly, he missed his final exam for his senior year heat transfer class and was one requirement short of officially earning his degree. CU chose to award him the degree following his Mercury flight, stating that "His subsequent training as an Astronaut has more than made up for the deficiency in the subject of heat transfer."