Apollo 1 Crew
Apollo 1 astronauts "Gus" Grissom (left), Edward White, and Roger Chaffee pose in front of the Saturn 1 launch vehicle at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. On the morning of January 27, 1967, the crew was sitting atop the launch pad for a pre-launch test when a fire broke out in their capsule, killing all three astronauts. The investigation into the fatal accident led to major design changes for future launch vehicles.
Photograph courtesy NASA

Early U.S. Spaceflight

See photos of early U.S. spaceflights and missions in this photo gallery from National Geographic.