# Mercury spacesuits

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mercury-spacesuits/752326>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [April 16, 2016, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mercury-spacesuits/752326 "2016-04-16T02:57:10Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![obbn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/d6d6ee/32.png) [@obbn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obbn)\
**Post date:** [April 16, 2016, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mercury-spacesuits/752326/1 "2016-04-16T02:57:10Z")

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Hello Everyone,

I spent this evening watching The Right Stuff again. On the astronauts spacesuits there seems to be a mirrored disc on their chestplates. What is this for?

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**Author:** ![Grey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b782af/32.png) [@Grey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grey)\
**Post date:** [April 16, 2016, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mercury-spacesuits/752326/2 "2016-04-16T03:29:37Z")

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DO you see it on an of the suits in the Mercury Spacesuit gallery at NASA?[Mercury Spacesuit Image Gallery | NASA](http://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/spacesuits/historygallery/mercury-index.html#lowerAccordion-set1-slide2)

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**Author:** ![obbn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/d6d6ee/32.png) [@obbn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obbn)\
**Post date:** [April 16, 2016, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mercury-spacesuits/752326/3 "2016-04-16T03:32:52Z")

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No, but in the film you only see it when they are in the capsule, not when they are outside of it.

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**Author:** ![blue\_infinity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blue_infinity/32/2817_2.png) [@blue\_infinity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blue_infinity)\
**Post date:** [April 16, 2016, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mercury-spacesuits/752326/4 "2016-04-16T04:40:55Z")

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From [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Navy_Mark_IV)

> [@](#):
>
> After the MR-3 flight in May 1961, the Mercury pressure suit underwent several changes to incorporate improvements, mainly for comfort and mobility. These changes included:
> 
> ```
> Incorporation of a **convex mirror** , dubbed the "Hero Medal," on the chest of the astronauts so that the same onboard camera used to record the astronaut could also cover the instrument panel, eliminating the weight of a separate camera which had been used for this purpose on MR-3. This was eliminated beginning with MA-8.
> 
> ```

You can see it in [slide 6](http://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/spacesuits/historygallery/mer-1962.html) of the gallery linked by **Grey**.