Astronaut John Glenn dead at 95
John Glenn, who became one of the 20th century’s greatest heroes as the first American to orbit Earth, has died aged 95.
Glenn was the last surviving member of the original seven “Right Stuff” Mercury astronauts, and had a long career as a US senator.
“John Glenn is, and always will be, Ohio’s ultimate hometown hero, and his passing today is an occasion for all of us to grieve,” Ohio Governor John Kasich said in a statement.
— John Kasich (@JohnKasich) December 8, 2016
Glenn was credited with reviving US pride after the Soviet Union’s early domination of manned space exploration.
His three laps around the world in the Friendship 7 capsule on February 20, 1962, forged a powerful link between the former fighter pilot and the Kennedy-era quest to explore outer space as a “New Frontier.”
As the third of seven astronauts in NASA’s solo-flight Mercury program to venture into space, Glenn became more of a media fixture than any of the others and was known for his composure and willingness to promote the program.
Glenn’s astronaut career, as well as his record as a fighter pilot in World War II and the Korean War, helped propel him to the US Senate in 1974, where he represented his home state of Ohio for 24 years as a moderate Democrat.
But his star was dimmed somewhat by a Senate investigation of several senators on whether special favours were done for a major campaign contributor. He was cleared of wrongdoing.
Glenn’s entry into history came in early 1961 when fellow astronaut Scott Carpenter bade him “Godspeed, John Glenn” just before the Ohio native was rocketed into space for a record-breaking trip that would last just under five hours.
“Zero-G (gravity) and I feel fine,” was Glenn’s succinct assessment of weightlessness several minutes into his mission … Oh, and that view is tremendous.”
After splashdown and recovery in the Atlantic, Glenn was treated as a hero, addressing a joint session of Congress and being feted in a New York ticker-tape parade.
His experiences as a pioneer astronaut were chronicled in the book and movie The Right Stuff, along with the other Mercury pilots. The book’s author, Tom Wolfe, called Glenn “the last true national hero America has ever had”.
“I don’t think of myself that way,” Glenn told the New York Times in 2012 to mark the 50th anniversary of his flight.
“I get up each day and have the same problems others have at my age. As far as trying to analyse all the attention I received, I will leave that to others.”
Glenn’s historic flight made him a favourite of President John Kennedy and his brother Robert, who encouraged him to launch a political career that finally took off after a period as a businessman made him a millionaire.
TEN INTERESTING JOHN GLENN FACTS
ENDURING MARRIAGE
He married his childhood sweetheart, Anna “Annie” Margaret Castor, in 1943. She survives him. He bought her a diamond engagement ring in 1942 for $US125 ($A168) and it was never replaced.
FIGHTER PILOT
Glenn was a US Marine Corps fighter pilot in World War II and the Korean conflict, flying 149 missions. He flew with baseball legend Ted Williams and his plane was riddled with bullets when he flew at low altitude.
TEST PILOT
As a military test pilot in 1957, Glenn broke the transcontinental air speed record, bursting from Los Angeles to New York City in 3 hours, 23 minutes and 8 seconds. His Crusader jet averaged 725 miles per hour.
FIRST AMERICAN TO ORBIT EARTH
Glenn went into orbit on Friendship 7 on February 20, 1962, but the Soviet Union’s Yuri Gagarin was the first man to orbit Earth and Alan Shephard was the first American in space, on a sub-orbital mission.
IN THE CANYON OF HEROES
A total of 3474 tons of paper were swept up after Glenn’s ticker tape parade in New York in March of 1962 – more than any parade since the one marking the end of World War II.
TOO IMPORTANT TO FLY?
It has been said that President John F Kennedy felt he could not risk sending Glenn into space a second time. Said Glenn in a 1995 interview: “Kennedy had indicated to NASA that he would just as soon that I was not assigned to another flight. Now, whether it was because of the impact if I got killed on the second flight would that reflect politically, I never knew.”
LONGTIME SENATOR
A Democrat, Glenn was Ohio’s longest serving senator, serving just a bit more than 24 years until 1999. But that was only after two earlier attempts. In 1964, he had to stop his campaign after he hit his head in a bathtub accident, and he lost the Democratic primary in 1970.
HAT IN THE ULTIMATE RING
Glenn ran for the Democratic nomination for president in 1984 but lost in the primaries to former Vice President Walter Mondale.
OLDEST MAN IN SPACE
Glenn returned to space aboard the space shuttle Discovery in 1998 at age 77. He was the subject of experiments on geriatrics and microgravity.
LAST OF HIS KIND
Glenn was the last surviving member of the original Mercury 7 astronauts. Five hundred forty-six people flew in orbit after Glenn, only two before: Gagarin and Gherman Titov.
More to come
