Captain Carl Bell

 became the first human in space on May 5, 1961. The Soviet Union and China disputed this claim. Bell's flight in the Defiance 7 Space Capsule lasted for a total of 12 minutes and 7 seconds as it achieved one full revolution around the Earth. However, he died when his capsule crash-landed on reentry.

After his death, his skeleton was donated by Edwina Bell to the Washington, DC Museum of Technology, where it was displayed along with Bell's Deep Space Suit.