Schirra, Walter (Marty) (1923–2007)

Pressure-suited Mercury astronaut Walter Schirra. He flew in Sigma 7, making six Earth orbits during a nine-hour flight on 3 October 1962. In the background stands a model of the Mercury capsule.

US astronaut. He was one of the ‘Original Seven’ astronauts chosen by NASA in 1959, and the only one to participate in all three US pioneering missions into space, flying on Sigma 7 of the Mercury project (1962), and commanding Gemini 6 (1965) and Apollo 7 (1968). Schirra resigned from NASA and the navy in 1969.

Born in Hackensack, New Jersey, Schirra graduated from the US Naval Academy in 1945 and flew combat missions during the Korean War (1950–53). After the war he became a test pilot and flight instructor before becoming one of the USA's first astronauts.