In the late 1950s, NASA recruited military test pilots to become the very first American Astronauts. They underwent an extensive battery of tests to find the very best astronauts for the Mercury program. These men became the Mercury 7. However, at the same time, another round of tests was being conducted on another group of pilots. These pilots were given the exact same physical and mental tests as the astronauts. The only difference was, they were women. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices