Astronaut Scott Carpenter

From Boulder’s Aurora Avenue, a young boy gazed at the stars and dreamt big. Near the Flatirons, Scott Carpenter grew up at the corner of Seventh and Aurora, graduated from Boulder High, and turned his attention skyward. After a stint as a Navy pilot, Carpenter returned to his hometown and studied aeronautical engineering at the University of Colorado. When NASA picked the first astronauts for its inaugural human spaceflight program, Project Mercury, Carpenter made the cut. In 1962, he rode the Aurora 7 capsule – SOLO – into orbit, and became the second American to loop around the Earth. Boulderites still love the name connection, but Carpenter later denied he named the spacecraft for the Aurora Avenue of his childhood. Either way, Boulder still encourages kids to dream big at Scott Carpenter Park, where the rocket-ship playground is a bright monument to a Colorado boy who kept looking up.

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Colorado Postcards are snapshots of our colorful state in sound. They give brief insights into our people and places, our flora and fauna, and our past and present, from every corner of Colorado. See more postcards.