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Leap of Faith: An Astronaut's Journey Into the Unknown
“An exciting insider’s look at Projects Mercury, Gemini and Apollo . . . NASA’s internal politics, disasters, glitches and close calls” by a pioneering astronaut (Publishers Weekly).
Gordon “Gordo” Cooper was one of the original Mercury Seven astronauts, pilot for Apollo X, head of flight crew operations for the United States’ first orbiting space station, and the last American to venture into space alone. Stretching from the dawning days of NASA to the far reaches of the unknown, Cooper’s distinguished career as a record-setting astronaut helped shape America’s space program and blazed a trail for generations to come.
In this astonishing memoir—written with #1 New York Times bestseller Bruce Henderson—Cooper crosses paths with such aviation luminaries as Amelia Earhart, Wiley Post, and German rocket scientist Wernher von Braun; he shares his early days at Edwards Air Force Base and the endeavors that became the basis for The Right Stuff; he takes us inside NASA with candid accounts of his defeats and accomplishments; he reflects on the triumphs and tragedies of his heroic colleagues; and he finally reveals the reasons behind his belief in extraterrestrial intelligence, including the US military’s long-standing UFO cover-ups.
Buckle yourself in for a breathtaking ride because in Leap of Faith, Gordon Cooper takes readers to places they’ve never been before.
Gordon “Gordo” Cooper was one of the original Mercury Seven astronauts, pilot for Apollo X, head of flight crew operations for the United States’ first orbiting space station, and the last American to venture into space alone. Stretching from the dawning days of NASA to the far reaches of the unknown, Cooper’s distinguished career as a record-setting astronaut helped shape America’s space program and blazed a trail for generations to come.
In this astonishing memoir—written with #1 New York Times bestseller Bruce Henderson—Cooper crosses paths with such aviation luminaries as Amelia Earhart, Wiley Post, and German rocket scientist Wernher von Braun; he shares his early days at Edwards Air Force Base and the endeavors that became the basis for The Right Stuff; he takes us inside NASA with candid accounts of his defeats and accomplishments; he reflects on the triumphs and tragedies of his heroic colleagues; and he finally reveals the reasons behind his belief in extraterrestrial intelligence, including the US military’s long-standing UFO cover-ups.
Buckle yourself in for a breathtaking ride because in Leap of Faith, Gordon Cooper takes readers to places they’ve never been before.
279 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 1, 2000
72 people are currently reading
397 people want to read
About the author
L. Gordon Cooper Jr.
4 books6 followersLeroy Gordon "Gordo" Cooper Jr. was an American aerospace engineer, test pilot, United States Air Force pilot, and the youngest of the seven original astronauts in Project Mercury, the first human space program of the United States. Cooper learned to fly as a child, and after service in the United States Marine Corps during World War II, he was commissioned into the United States Air Force in 1949. After service as a fighter pilot, he qualified as a test pilot in 1956, and was selected as an astronaut in 1959. In 1963 Cooper piloted the longest and last Mercury spaceflight, Mercury-Atlas 9.He later flew on Gemini 5 with Pete Conrad in August 1965. He retired from NASA and the Air Force in July 1970.
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Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
August 5, 2016
THIS WAS SO WEIRD I HONESTLY DON'T KNOW WHERE TO GO FROM HERE. The first 2/3 of the book is totally normal, focusing on his childhood, love of flying, and of course, his experience as one of the original seven. I struggled a little because there isn't much organization. It feels like Gordo jotted down chapters randomly. It doesn't move chronologically or even topically. You can get over that, but the last few chapters of the book abruptly shift to UFOs in barns and a chick who is communicating telepathically with aliens. So our possibilities are: 1) This all actually happened. 2) His brains were fried by radiation. 3) This was all made up to sell books. Is there an X-Files episode about this? There totally should be.
Anyway, I really liked Gordo's tone and I literally loled several times. Most of the chapters end along the lines of, "That was one pissed off chimp!" or "That was one damn fine flying saucer!" His personality really shines through. The problem is I feel like I could never recommend this book to anyone without coming across as a psycho because of the telepathic alien communication thing.
Anyway, I really liked Gordo's tone and I literally loled several times. Most of the chapters end along the lines of, "That was one pissed off chimp!" or "That was one damn fine flying saucer!" His personality really shines through. The problem is I feel like I could never recommend this book to anyone without coming across as a psycho because of the telepathic alien communication thing.
December 15, 2012
This is the best astronaut autobiography I ever read. Just the normal stuff about him training to be an astronaut is great enough.
January 1, 2008
I read this right after Yeager's autobiography and I didn't like it as much. Gordo's writing style wasn't quite as engaging, though I did enjoy reading about his exploits. The kicker with this one was Cooper's exposition about UFOs. I consider Gordon Cooper to be a rational human being and a reputable source. Nothing in the rest of his book indicated that he had a screw loose. That said, he gave compelling evidence for a government cover-up of UFOs. His evidence and opinions weren't presented in a wacky X-Files "they're out to get us" way, either. The whole thing gave me food for thought for quite some time after I finished the book. At any rate, the bulk of the book was about Cooper's experiences with NASA, which I thoroughly enjoyed. Regardless of the last bit, I don't think I'll watch Men in Black any differently. (heh)
February 28, 2008
This autobiography of one of the first Mercury astronauts is interesting, revealing; includes the back story about the life-threatening problem about one of his flights and his later encounters with what he feels assured were UFOs.
January 25, 2013
This autobiography was more interesting than I had expected, particularly as it contains Cooper's experiences with and opinions about UFOs, which he takes to be extraterrestrial craft, within what is otherwise a normal enough biography of a test pilot/astronaut.
November 12, 2018
Gordon Cooper, one of the original seven Mercury astronauts, reveals behind-the-scenes events of the early days of NASA’s space program and takes a look at what might be the next millennium of space travel.
Cooper, along with the other six Mercury astronauts, came to NASA following a distinguished career as a test pilot. “Leap of Faith” promises readers a journey to places they’ve never been before as the space pioneer takes them into the cockpits of airplanes and spacecraft.
Highly recommended.
Cooper, along with the other six Mercury astronauts, came to NASA following a distinguished career as a test pilot. “Leap of Faith” promises readers a journey to places they’ve never been before as the space pioneer takes them into the cockpits of airplanes and spacecraft.
Highly recommended.
January 16, 2021
The first ten chapters could be a 4, but from 11 to the end he launches (sorry) into tale after tale about UFOs and advanced intelligence and some people he worked with about them. People who don't come up in google searches with any really verifiable information. I'm not saying there isn't other life out there somewhere, but this was nuts. And then he was going to actually get to ride in a flying saucer but the aliens (or whoever is transmitting all this advanced information) back out. Uh huh. Final rating is more like a 1.5.
March 16, 2021
Fascinating eye-witness account to the beginnings of NASA and space travel. Cooper knew and worked alongside many big names: JFK, John Glenn, Gene Kranz, and Wernher von Braun. In fact, chapter 8 on the latter man was gripping; as was Cooper’s reactions to losing a good friend in the Apollo 1 tragedy.
HOWEVER, I pretty much lost all interest by the time he met a Valerie Ransone who convinced him that she was getting telepathic communication from extraterrestrial civilizations. Then it got waaay too ouija board for me.
HOWEVER, I pretty much lost all interest by the time he met a Valerie Ransone who convinced him that she was getting telepathic communication from extraterrestrial civilizations. Then it got waaay too ouija board for me.
August 11, 2024
Very good biography on astronaut and the early history of USA man in space. The ending was fascinating too… UFOS and Nikolai Tesla.
September 11, 2014
This was the first Astronaut biography I read, and it really does a good job of capturing the hot shot test pilot mentality along with Cooper's early life. The real problem here is the UFO/paranormal stuff which comes out of nowhere at the end of the book (and it definitely goes beyond just seeing weird things in space, like people having psychic contact with UFOs). Not sure why they decided to go in that direction when writing this, especially since it's not referenced in the books description at all, but on the plus side of that he does speak about that stuff very rationally...if you consider that a plus side. But at least he never seems to buy into the things he talks about wholeheartedly...kinda?
Depending on how skeptical you are at heart, the end of the book could ruin it for you, but besides that, the rest was an even better portrait of Astronaut man-boys than Riding Rockets was. In the end, the UFO stuff makes it really hard to recommend this book to people, especially anyone with an interest in manned spaceflight or NASA history. If you can ignore the weird bits, its great, if not then you might want to just watch The Right Stuff instead.
Depending on how skeptical you are at heart, the end of the book could ruin it for you, but besides that, the rest was an even better portrait of Astronaut man-boys than Riding Rockets was. In the end, the UFO stuff makes it really hard to recommend this book to people, especially anyone with an interest in manned spaceflight or NASA history. If you can ignore the weird bits, its great, if not then you might want to just watch The Right Stuff instead.
November 5, 2014
The person who gave me this book warned me that a third of the book involved some sketchy bits about communication with an alien intelligence. He didn't warn me that if you've already seen (or read) The Right Stuff or seen Apollo 13 there isn't much new info here.
Cooper (et als) tone is breezy and personal, but ultimately lightweight, so when he starts getting into the UFO sightings and subsequent coverups, it comes off as less convincing than an episode of the X-Files. And when he begins working with a woman who gets advanced technological insights from an alien intelligence beamed into her brain - or something, Cooper is clear that he has no idea what it is - he just can't make it stick.
If you like alien mumbo-jumbo, this could be the book for you. If you are looking for an in-depth biography of an astronaut or a perspective on the history of the American space program, look elsewhere.
Cheers!
Cooper (et als) tone is breezy and personal, but ultimately lightweight, so when he starts getting into the UFO sightings and subsequent coverups, it comes off as less convincing than an episode of the X-Files. And when he begins working with a woman who gets advanced technological insights from an alien intelligence beamed into her brain - or something, Cooper is clear that he has no idea what it is - he just can't make it stick.
If you like alien mumbo-jumbo, this could be the book for you. If you are looking for an in-depth biography of an astronaut or a perspective on the history of the American space program, look elsewhere.
Cheers!
January 27, 2013
What a bizarre story!
The last of the Mercury astronauts turns out to be a UFO nut? Who would have guessed. Strange tales of extraterrestial telepathy towards the end.
A bit thin on technical data about the American program and, of course, even thinner on how to build a flying saucer.
Fascinating...but I have to ask "Was he mad?"
The last of the Mercury astronauts turns out to be a UFO nut? Who would have guessed. Strange tales of extraterrestial telepathy towards the end.
A bit thin on technical data about the American program and, of course, even thinner on how to build a flying saucer.
Fascinating...but I have to ask "Was he mad?"
June 7, 2008
this was really good and interesting.
August 3, 2013
Interesting right up to the final third of the book on UFOs, messages from extra-terrestrials........
March 29, 2021
I'm a huge fan of NASA's early years, so I was excited to read this. It was good, but not what I expected.
Cooper recounts his time with NASA, and his account of his time in space was amazing. It was after that when his story changes from the usual astronaut memoir. Cooper is the first person who came forward to say that flight assignments were based as much on politics as merit. He claimed that Deke Slayton and Alan Shepherd both wanted slots on Apollo and since they were in charge, they based flight assignments on their personal ambitions. He also claims that years later, Shepherd admitted this fact at an astronaut reunion.
It's what comes after his astronaut years that is different from most of the astronaut memoirs I've read. While he denies emphatically that he saw a UFO while in space, he claims that he did experience UFO encounters over the years. Enough that he decided to get involved in the "UFO communtiy" for want of a better term. He interviewed other credible witnesses over the years, including military personnel. He makes a compelling case that the government's Blue Book Project was at best a half-hearted investigation, at worst a whitewashing of compelling evidence of extraterrestrial encounters.
I highly recommend this for anyone interested in NASA's Gemini/Mercury/Apollo years, as well as people interested in UFOs.
Cooper recounts his time with NASA, and his account of his time in space was amazing. It was after that when his story changes from the usual astronaut memoir. Cooper is the first person who came forward to say that flight assignments were based as much on politics as merit. He claimed that Deke Slayton and Alan Shepherd both wanted slots on Apollo and since they were in charge, they based flight assignments on their personal ambitions. He also claims that years later, Shepherd admitted this fact at an astronaut reunion.
It's what comes after his astronaut years that is different from most of the astronaut memoirs I've read. While he denies emphatically that he saw a UFO while in space, he claims that he did experience UFO encounters over the years. Enough that he decided to get involved in the "UFO communtiy" for want of a better term. He interviewed other credible witnesses over the years, including military personnel. He makes a compelling case that the government's Blue Book Project was at best a half-hearted investigation, at worst a whitewashing of compelling evidence of extraterrestrial encounters.
I highly recommend this for anyone interested in NASA's Gemini/Mercury/Apollo years, as well as people interested in UFOs.
May 21, 2024
Really Out There…
Growing up in the early 1960s in aerospace industry nirvana Los Angeles I collected astronaut stories like baseball cards. Gordon Cooper was the last of the Mercury Seven to fly and had the longest mission so he was on my radar.
This book is interesting but also strange and demands a science-fiction-like willingness to “suspend disbelief.”
Cooper was not only a great flier, some of his trips took him to the uncharted territory of true believer - about alien space visits, extra dimensions, telepathy.
Is it reasonable that he could have been a great pilot and national hero and major whack-job at the same time? Or did he truly know things most of us do not?
Each reader will have to judge for themselves. But it should be noted that Edgar Mitchell, who walked on the moon, spent the rest of his life as a believer as well.
It makes this an interesting and thought-provoking read.
Growing up in the early 1960s in aerospace industry nirvana Los Angeles I collected astronaut stories like baseball cards. Gordon Cooper was the last of the Mercury Seven to fly and had the longest mission so he was on my radar.
This book is interesting but also strange and demands a science-fiction-like willingness to “suspend disbelief.”
Cooper was not only a great flier, some of his trips took him to the uncharted territory of true believer - about alien space visits, extra dimensions, telepathy.
Is it reasonable that he could have been a great pilot and national hero and major whack-job at the same time? Or did he truly know things most of us do not?
Each reader will have to judge for themselves. But it should be noted that Edgar Mitchell, who walked on the moon, spent the rest of his life as a believer as well.
It makes this an interesting and thought-provoking read.
August 5, 2025
Gordon's story is an amazing and exiting one. His recollections of the early stages of american and russian space exploration is interesting and entertaining. The insights and internal politics are detailed and well told by Gordo.
The issue is the unsubstantiated claims about UFOs and other high strangeness allegations. I absolutely hate when the write backs them up with generic terms like 'specialists' and 'scientists' without giving names, sources or references. Besides, he follows the trend of many other in the same space, e.g. Stephen Greer, Tom Delonghi, Lue Elizondo, Paul Hellyer, Linda Moulton Howe to mention some, who make claims and promises of disruptive technologies and they never ever eventuate. What are the output from the Advanced Technology whatever?
Also it is clear he was massively misled by his business partner Valerie Ranson, who promised a extraterrestrial encounter and trip onboard of a UFO craft, and again for higher reasons it did not happen.
The issue is the unsubstantiated claims about UFOs and other high strangeness allegations. I absolutely hate when the write backs them up with generic terms like 'specialists' and 'scientists' without giving names, sources or references. Besides, he follows the trend of many other in the same space, e.g. Stephen Greer, Tom Delonghi, Lue Elizondo, Paul Hellyer, Linda Moulton Howe to mention some, who make claims and promises of disruptive technologies and they never ever eventuate. What are the output from the Advanced Technology whatever?
Also it is clear he was massively misled by his business partner Valerie Ranson, who promised a extraterrestrial encounter and trip onboard of a UFO craft, and again for higher reasons it did not happen.
April 28, 2022
Very interesting and readable. In fact, it is a page turner. I don't know what to think about his connection with Valerie Ransone. That part sounded like New Age. But she did a receive a "message" about a defective system on one of the space shuttles. Cooper told NASA about it; the report was investigated; and Ransone's information was correct. The system was adjusted before the space shuttle took off.
March 13, 2019
As the odd ball of the Astronaut corps I have always admired "Gordo". What else can you say about a guy who is so calm he can sleep through the count down hold while sitting on a Mercury Rocket. I am willing to listen to Gordon's ideals of spiritualism as it relates to his experiences in space.
You should read this to have an additional perspective on the Mercury 7.
You should read this to have an additional perspective on the Mercury 7.
January 9, 2024
It started out ok, although as a life long aviation freak I noticed a lot of errors that told me this was entirely ghost written with little comment from Cooper. But then the last third is total nonsense about telepathic contact from aliens and UFOs.
January 14, 2021
Interesting behind the scenes story about the early days of manned space exploration.
no-thank-you
November 11, 2022Boyd read it and said it't not worth reading.
May 12, 2023
Excellent Book, I wish it was longer
I had been looking forward to this Book and I enjoyed every page! Gordon Cooper was a genius and overlooked sometimes. Highly recommended 😘
I had been looking forward to this Book and I enjoyed every page! Gordon Cooper was a genius and overlooked sometimes. Highly recommended 😘
December 31, 2023
My most interesting part of the book was learning that Cooper was the first non-smoker in space. “John Glenn quit during the program.” “~Wally Schirra and Al Shepard smoked right up to the launch pad.” Times sure change
Cooper discusses UFO’s and Roswell. He says “I give the public more credit than our government has at times. Most people want to know what’s going on in the world around them and would rather hear the truth, whatever it is than a pack of lies.” Supposedly the government’s reasoning for covering up a UFO crash at Roswell was telling the truth would cause mass hysteria.
Tape recorded prayer said during Cooper’s 17th orbit flying over the Indian Ocean:
“Help guide and direct all of us that we may shape our lives to be much better trying to help one another and to work with one another.” Some prayers remain unanswered.
Cooper discusses UFO’s and Roswell. He says “I give the public more credit than our government has at times. Most people want to know what’s going on in the world around them and would rather hear the truth, whatever it is than a pack of lies.” Supposedly the government’s reasoning for covering up a UFO crash at Roswell was telling the truth would cause mass hysteria.
Tape recorded prayer said during Cooper’s 17th orbit flying over the Indian Ocean:
“Help guide and direct all of us that we may shape our lives to be much better trying to help one another and to work with one another.” Some prayers remain unanswered.
June 27, 2021
An interesting memoir by one of the original Mercury 7 astronauts, Gordon Cooper. His story manages to be both fascinating and thought provoking, especially regarding his thoughts and experiences with extraterrestrial life.
September 8, 2024
todo el principio genial me encanta después que ??? gordon cooper qué pasó por qué tan esquizo
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews