39. [Mercury Redstone 3] COVER OF LIFE: 'A-OK!' THE U.S. IS IN SPACE, iconic helicopter recovery of the first American in space Alan Shepard Dean Conger, 5 May 1961 Printed 1961. Vintage gelatin silver print on fibre-based paper [NASA image S-61-2718]. Numbered "NASA S-61-2718" in black in the top margin, with NASA credit stamp on the reverse (issued by NASA Headquarters, Washington, D.C.). 20.3 x 25.4 cm. (8 x 10 in.) Historical context This striking photograph captures the recovery of Alan Shepard and the Freedom 7 capsule, marking the triumphant culmination of America's first manned spaceflight. "Everything AOK [all perfect]. Dye marker out", Shepard reported after the capsule safely splashed down in the Atlantic Ocean. The recovery operation, lasting only four minutes and witnessed by millions on television and 500,000 spectators at the launch site, symbolized a monumental achievement in space exploration history. After a 15-minute suborbital flight, Shepard splashed down approximately 302 miles downrange from Cape Canaveral near Bermuda. In this image, a Marine Corps helicopter is seen airlifting Shepard from the Freedom 7 capsule below to return him to the aircraft carrier USS Lake Champlain. This photograph was taken from the helicopter by Dean Conger, one of the National Geographic Society's most renowned photographers. A closely related variant graced the cover of LIFE magazine on May 12, 1961. Alan Shepard reflected on the landing in his Flight's Pilot Report: "The landing did not seem any more severe than a catapult shot from an aircraft carrier. The spacecraft hit and then flopped on its side so that I was on my right side. I felt that I could immediately execute an underwater escape should it become necessary. [...] I could see the water covering one porthole, I could see the yellow dye marker out the other porthole and, later on, I could see one of the helicopters through the periscope. The spacecraft righted itself slowly, and I began to read the cockpit instruments for data purposes after impact. I found very little time for that since the helicopter was already calling me." Literature LIFE, 12 May 1961, cover (variant) NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC, September 1961, pp. 436-437 (variant) NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC, September 1961, pp. 438-439 (variant)