- Scott Carpenter
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I don't know. I'm still warm and still perspiring, but not really uncomfortable. I would like to—I would like to nail this suit temperature problem down. It—for all practical purposes, it's uncontrollable as far as I can see.
- CAPCOM
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Roger. Understand. You might have to wait a few more minutes before this takes effect. You are on No. 6. Is that right?
- CAPCOM
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Roger. Systems reports that your suit temperature has dropped 2 degrees over station, if that's any encouragement to you.
- Scott Carpenter
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Yes, I have. However, the food has crumbled badly; and I hate to open the package any more for fear of getting crumbs all over the capsule. I can verify that eating bite-size food as we packaged for this flight is no problem at all. Even the crumbly foods are eaten with no, with no problem.
Expand selection up Contract selection down Close - Scott Carpenter
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I had taken four swallows at approximately this time last orbit. As soon as I get the suit temperature pegged a little bit, I'll open the visor and have some more water. Over.
- Scott Carpenter
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One of the labels for a fuse switch has slipped out, and sideways, and has tied the adjoining fuse switch together with it. This happened to emergency-main and reserve-deploy fuse switches.
- Scott Carpenter
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I caged the gyros. They are too critical. I will try and navigate on the dark side without the gyros.
- Scott Carpenter
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The fuse switch should be glued in better so that turning off one fuse does not turn off the adjoining one.
- Scott Carpenter
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Oh yes. There is the xylose pill. It didn't melt. All the rest of the stuff in here did melt.
- Scott Carpenter
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Okay. Xylose pill being consumed at 02 41 35. The rest of the food is pretty much of a mess. Can't stand this cabin temperature.
- Scott Carpenter
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Roger, George. My control mode is manual. The gyros are caged, maneuver is off. Fuel is 45 and 64 [percent], a little ahead of schedule. Oxygen reads 82-100 [percent]. Steam vent temperature in the suit is dropping slightly. It's a little below 70 [degrees]. Cabin is 4.6 [psia]. Suit temperature has dropped to about 71 [degrees] now. All the power is good, and here is a blood pressure. Over.
- Scott Carpenter
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I did have the visor open a short time ago for the xylose pill. All of the rest of the food that I have aboard has either crumbled or melted. It's unusable in its present state so I think the xylose pill will constitute my last zero g meal. However, the first one, before the food crumbled, was quite easy. It's no problem to eat this bite-size food—in a weightless state. I also drank some water at that time, which was no problem.
- CAPCOM
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Roger. I take it, from what you said then, that you have confirmed that your faceplate is closed for the decision on the third orbit.
- Scott Carpenter
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That is correct. My faceplate is closed. Also, what is the trend of my cabin pressure on the ground? Over.
- CAPCOM
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We are checking on your request there, Scott. Could you hit that button again? We lost your EKG.
- CAPCOM
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No, we lost the EKG. Possibly you could press on those sensors. Okay, Surgeon informs me that the EKG is now returning. Your other question, cabin pressure is staying at 5.1 [psia] approximately.
- CAPCOM
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Negative on that. It's gone from 5.8 [psia] at launch to approximately 5.1 [psia] in very, very gradual descending trend.
- CAPCOM
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Do you have any specific comments on your balloon experiments; for example, the best color contrast with the
- CAPCOM
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Roger. For your information, the second sunrise should be expected in approximately 3 to 4 minutes.
- CAPCOM
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Everything continues to look very good here on the ground. I've got a reading here on the ground for cabin pressure. This is for your information, is 4.8 [psia]. Now, this does take the trend that has been set up considerably. The suit pressure comes in at 4.9 [psia].
- CAPCOM
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We find now that the the O2 partial pressure is fluctuating slightly, and the—hanging around 4.2 [psia].
- CAPCOM
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As I said before, everything looks very good here. Surgeon is after me here for you to try another blood pressure. Is this convenient?
- Scott Carpenter
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Negative. I won't be able to hold still for it now. I've got the sunrise to worry about.
- CAPCOM
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Okay. Roger. We have no further queries. If you have any comments we'll be listening down here.
- Scott Carpenter
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Negative. I have a beautiful sunrise through the window. I'll record it so you can see it.
- Scott Carpenter
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Roger. My control mode is manual; gyros caged; maneuver off. Stand by one. My status is good and the capsule status is good. I want to get some pictures of the sunrise. Over.
- CAPCOM
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Roger. 45 and 62 [percent].
Expand selection down Contract selection up - Scott Carpenter
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That is right. I have reported it, and I believe I reported it a long time ago. It is covered with tape at the moment.
- CAPCOM
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Aurora Seven, Aurora Seven, Cap Com. Cape Flight advises me that we—that they expected the cabin to do such.
- CAPCOM
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Aurora Seven. This is Cap Com. Would like for you to return to gyros normal and see what kind of indication we have; whether or not your window view agrees with your gyros.
- Scott Carpenter
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I have some more of the white particles in view below the capsule. They appear to be traveling exactly my speed. There is one drifting off. It's going faster than I am as a matter of fact.
- Scott Carpenter
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I haven't seen the great numbers of these particles, but I've seen a few of them. Their motion is random; they look exactly like snowflakes to me.
- Scott Carpenter
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There were some more of those—little particles. They definitely look like snowflakes this time.
- Scott Carpenter
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Roger. Blood pressure—start—now. I have the balloon—now—pretty steadily below me, not oscillating. And go to gyros normal. Gyros normal now.
Spoken on May 24, 1962, 3:20 p.m. UTC (62 years, 5 months ago). Link to this transcript range is: Tweet