Physical Appearance:
Brown hair
Green eyes
5 feet 10 inches, 160 lb.

Family:
parents - Dr. Marion Carpenter and Florence Kelso (Noxon) Carpenter
1st wife - Rene Louise (Price) Carpenter, 2nd wife - Maria (Roach) Carpenter
He had a total of six children

Education:
BS from University of Colorado, 1949

Honors:
Fellow in the Institute of Environmental Sciences
Association of Space Explorers -USA member
Delta Tau Delta member
Legion of Merit award
Distinguished Flying Cross
NASA Distinguished Service Medal
Navy Astronaut Wings
University of Colorado Recognition Medal
National Aeronautic Association's Collier Trophy
New York City Gold Medal of Honor
Elisha Kent Kane Medal
Boy Scouts of America Silver Buffalo
Numismatica Italiana Award

Astronaut M. Scott Carpenter started his career by entering the Navy's V-5 flight training program at the University of Colorado.  This enabled him to learn to fly while pursuing academics.  In 1949 he received his degree from the University of Colorado and joined the Navy.  When Carpenter joined the Navy he continued his flight training at bases in Pensacola, Florida and Corpus Christi, Texas, from November 1949 to April 1951.  He later, in 1951, participated in the Korean Conflict.  After the war, in 1954, he entered Navy Test Pilot School at the Naval Air Test Center in Maryland  where he trained to be a test pilot.  He tested many experimental aircraft during this time, and due to his accomplishments he was selected to be one of the 110 candidates for the Project Mercury selection.    He was chosen to be one of the "Original Seven" Mercury astronauts and went to Langley, Virginia for training.  During the time Carpenter was a part of Project Mercury he was backup pilot for John Glenn's Friendship 7 flight.  Later, he was the pilot of the MA-7 flight, Aurora 7, which launched on May 24, 1962.  The goal of this mission was to orbit the Earth three times to see if an astronaut could perform various working tasks in space.  He was to conduct numerous experiments during the course of the 4 hour, 56 minute flight.  The major drawback of the mission was the unexpected problems with re-entry, resulting in a 250 mile overshoot of the landing location.  This caused major delays in the water recovery of Carpenter and the Aurora 7 capsule. As the result of his performance on the mission he would never fly another NASA mission, however he did assist in the development of the lunar module used for the Apollo project.  He left NASA in 1965 to pursue the Navy's SEALAB project on the ocean's floor.  In July of 1969, Commander M. Scott Carpenter retired from the Navy.