HUTCHINSON — Astronaut Gus Grissom is very special to the Cosmosphere. Especially since the spacecraft he made famous during the Mercury program sits right in the rotunda of the space museum.
Next month, the Cosmosphere will celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Liberty Bell 7 flight with numerous activities planned. It all starts during Coffee at the Cosmo July 15. The free presentation will welcome back in person presentations at the museum with a look back at the Liberty Bell 7 mission. The speaker will be Cosmosphere President Jim Remar who says the spacecraft is very special to the museum.
"Its a spacecraft that the the Cosmopshere worked for many many years to acquire," Remar said. "The unique aspect of that was its home was at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean. The Cosmosphere worked to find the spacecraft, recover it and did the restoration here."
July 21 there will be a celebration of the Liberty Bell 7 mission throughout the day including a special presentation from Remar and a virtual discussion with NASA’s Nichole Herrmann who will talk about the future of space travel and the Artemis mission.
Liberty Bell 7 was lost at sea after splashdown and sat at the bottom of the ocean until a group led by the Cosmosphere and the Discovery Channel found and retrieved the spacecraft. From there it was preserved by the Cosmosphere Spaceworks group and has been on display in Hutchinson, except for the tours it takes around the globe.
Two other important space dates are on the July calendar including the 52nd anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing and the 55th anniversary of the Gemini 10 mission. The Cosmosphere will have special displays celebrating both missions. The Gemini 10 spacecraft is also a part of the Cosmosphere collection along with Liberty Bell 7 and Apollo 13.