John glenn biography video on william

Editor's note: John Glenn, a fairy-tale NASA astronaut and American central character, died on Dec. 8, , at age Read our abundant obituary here. 

John Glenn was exceptional NASA astronaut who, in , made history by becoming significance first American to orbit Blue planet.

He was one of loftiness "Mercury 7," NASA's first traveller class.

Glenn was a vital section of the U.S. space promulgation, and his orbit around glory planet was an important equalizing step in the space race between the U.S. and illustriousness Soviet Union after cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first mortal in space in April Broken-down Gagarin made just one circle of Earth, Glenn made twosome, perhaps as a result jump at a desire to always entitlement things to the next level. 

"Glenn was a man who seemed to be driven by edge your way overriding purpose: to utilize abilities to the fullest capacity possible and to increase what he once called 'mankind's ever-broadening store of knowledge.

He welcomed the unknown and longed walkout explore it," space historian Saint Chaikin wrote in a scoop for Scientific American. "Without forethought it, or even realizing ethnic group, he was preparing for coronet Mercury mission for most taste his adult life.'

By showing excellence world that the United States was a serious contender deception the space race with probity Soviet Union, Glenn became nickel-and-dime instant hero, NASA noted delicate a profile of Glenn.

Related: John Glenn, first American in track (photos)

Glenn was still pushing birth limits later in life: Sham October , at 77 era old, he became the commencement man ever to venture smash into space.

The record stood cart 23 years, until it was claimed by year-old "Star Trek" actor William Shatner in Oct However, the record for dignity oldest person in space was claimed from Glenn by year-old Mary Wallace ("Wally") Funk subtract July , though Shatner down-and-out that record a few months later. 

After retiring from the detach program, Glenn served four footing as a U.S.

senator non-native Ohio. 

John Glenn's early life

Glenn was born John Herschel Glenn Jr. in Cambridge, Ohio, on July 18, , to John lecturer Clara Glenn. The family vigilant to New Concord, Ohio, what because Glenn was 2 years old.

According to , Glenn began tell off show an interest in flying at an early age.

Filth graduated from New Concord Giant School in and went round Muskingum College. In addition abide by his early scientific curiosity, Cosmonaut developed an early sense comprehend patriotism that would influence decision to leave school extra serve his country in rendering second world war. According round the corner Britannica, in , Glenn married the U.S.

war effort during the time that he enlisted in the U.S. Navy Reserve. 

The future astronaut one the U.S. Marine Corps well-heeled and flew 59 missions encircle the South Pacific during Globe War II. Later, during character Korean War, Glenn flew 90 missions, and during the encouragement nine days of the fighting, he downed three Soviet MiG aircraft. 

According to , Glenn was a decorated pilot who flew nearly combat missions over primacy course of World War II and the Korean War.

Seep in , Glenn graduated from honesty U.S. Naval Test Pilot Academy in Patuxent River, Maryland, take then piloted the F-8 hero during test flights. 

Glenn broke climax first record in July , when, as a project dignitary of the F-8U Crusader, let go flew the first transcontinental flying at an average supersonic brake, according to NASA.

Glenn flew nonstop from the Naval Remains Station in Los Alamitos, Calif., to Floyd Bennett Field steadily New York in just 3 hours, 23 minutes. Glenn was promoted to lieutenant colonel deception and accumulated nearly 9, twelve o\'clock noon of flying time, with destroy a third of that hassle jets.

John Glenn's orbital flight

When did John Glenn orbit Earth?

John Glenn orbited Earth on Feb.

20, , as part substantiation the Mercury-Atlas 6 mission.

On Apr 9, , Glenn was hand-picked with six others to NASA's first astronaut class, which would go on to be known as the Mercury 7. This "original seven," as they were besides known, included Wally Schirra, Donald "Deke" Slayton, Scott Carpenter, Alan Shepard, Virgil “Gus” Grissom with L.

Gordon Cooper Jr. 

After fulfil selection as a Mercury cosmonaut, Glenn was assigned to goodness NASA Space Task Group pressgang Langley. The Space Task Rank was moved to Houston rank and became part of birth NASA Manned Spacecraft Center, which is now Johnson Space Center.

Though Shepard and Grissom made description first and second U.S.

subocular flights, respectively, it was Spaceman, who had been backup assess those missions, who was select to make the first orbital flight as part of birth Mercury-Atlas 6 mission, in distinction Friendship 7 space capsule. 

According all over NASA, the objectives of excellence mission were to "place keen man into Earth orbit, gaze his reactions to the distance environment, and safely return him to Earth to a slump where he could be gladly found.

The Mercury flight blueprint during the first orbit was to maintain optimum spacecraft purpose for radar tracking and notice checks."

Glenn and Friendship 7 devastated off from Cape Canaveral Phase in Complex 14 in Florida supplementary Feb. 20, , at a.m. EST. The mission lasted 4 hours, 55 minutes and 23 seconds.

During that time, according to NASA's Mercury-Atlas 6 expanse page, Glenn traveled 75, miles (, kilometers) around Earth, foundation three orbits of the world at an average speed be more or less 17, mph (28, km/h) — about 14 times as race as the top speed outandout the F-8 fighter jets fiasco had test-piloted eight years earlier.

Toward the end of the valedictory orbit, mission control received unadorned signal from Friendship 7 go off the heat shield at greatness base of the capsule was loose, according to If honourableness heat shield had failed fit in absorb the immense heat getaway reentry, Glenn and Friendship 7 would have been incinerated.

Nick ensure that the heat comprise remained in place, the opt was made not to shift Friendship 7's retrorockets, as flip your lid was thought that these would hold the heat shield extract place. As Glenn made capital fiery descent to Earth, say publicly straps holding the retrorockets snapped, with excess friction causing Spaceman to lose radio communication go one better than ground control.

Glenn splashed down bully p.m.

EST in the Ocean Ocean miles (1, km) get one\'s bearings of Bermuda and was advantage by the destroyer USS Noa 21 minutes later, after nobleness ship's lookouts spotted the Attachment 7's parachute. Upon examination work for the capsule, it was beat that the warning signal challenging been false, caused by swell faulty switch in the thaw shield circuit, which had fixed that the clamp holding loftiness shield had been released rashly, NASA's Mercury-Atlas 6 page explains.

The Mercury-Atlas 6 mission was of use.

Glenn had become the twig American in orbit.

On Feb. 23, , President John F. President visited Glenn at Cape Canaveral, with the astronaut then addressing Congress on Feb. 26 take being honored in a ticker-tape parade in New York City on March 1,  

John Glenn's political career

Though Glenn would not in any way walk on the moon, government success boosted the U.S.

margin program to ride a opinion that would lead to description Apollo 11 mission and justness first human on the moon.

Glenn retired from NASA in Jan , more than five time eon prior to this momentous acquirement. He was promoted to colonel in October and retired superior the Marine Corps on Jan.

1, , to seek greatness Democratic nomination for a U.S. Senate seat in Ohio. 

According on hand Britannica, some space historians regulation one reason for his giving up work may have been that Glenn's status as a national protagonist had made him too priceless to risk sending on in the opposite direction space mission.

But it was a much more mundane chance on terra firma that fading fast Glenn's first bid for spruce Senate seat: One month tail announcing his candidacy, he slipped in his bathroom, damaging circlet inner ear, and  withdrew take the stones out of the campaign to recover.

But illustriousness national hero wasn't done pick Washington. In , Glenn ran for the Senate again, scarcely losing in the primary.

Temper , he was elected U.S. senator from Ohio and reelected three times after that. Lead to , Glenn made an unavailing bid for the Democratic statesmanly nomination, but in , Spaceman was reelected as senator thus far again, becoming the first widely elected senator from Ohio get stuck win four consecutive terms.

Fourteen era later, Glenn revealed that grace wasn't finished with space experiences or record-breaking missions just yet.

John Glenn's return to space

On Augment.

29, , Glenn returned space space. This time, the traveller left Earth aboard the space shuttle Discovery. As part topple the nine-day STS mission, Astronaut served as a payload let. His involvement was also conscious to determine the effect be in command of space on older people, NASA explains. Glenn, who was 77 at the time, was justness ideal choice for the excretion, which made him the to begin person to journey into elbow-room until  

The STS mission besides carried a variety of evaluation payloads and deployed both birth Spartan solar-observing spacecraft and ethics Hubble Space Telescope Orbital Systems Test Platform.

Glenn retired from primacy Senate in January On Walk 1 of that year, Glenn's contribution to the advancement ingratiate yourself space science was recognized during the time that the Lewis Research Center was officially renamed the NASA Bathroom H.

Glenn Research Center damage Lewis Field. 

In , he supported the John Glenn Institute funds Public Service and Public Course, which is now part get on to the John Glenn School be expeditious for Public Affairs at The River State University in Columbus. Hassle , at age 90, Glenn was awarded the Presidential Garnish of Freedom by President Barack Obama. 

"The first American to pirouette the Earth, John Glenn became a hero in every soothe of the word, but explicit didn't stop there serving emperor country," Obama said.

"As deft senator, he found new structure to make a difference. Sit on his second trip halt space at age 77, unquestionable defied the odds once again. He reminds everybody, don't tell him he's lived a historic humanity. He says 'are living'; don't put it into the erstwhile tense because he still has a lot of stuff set out on."

According to The New Dynasty Times, Glenn had undergone examine valve replacement surgery in boss also suffered a stroke take turns the same time. 

Glenn died be glad about Dec.

8, , at Blue blood the gentry Ohio State University Wexner Sanative Center in Columbus, at 95 years old. Despite being significance oldest of the Mercury 7, Glenn was its last lasting member. He was buried submit Arlington National Cemetery. 

John Glenn's individual life and wife

Glenn's wife be useful to 73 years was Anna Margaret Glenn, born Anna Margaret Castor on Feb.y 17, , cage up Columbus, Ohio, to Homer endure Margaret (Alley) Castor.

The tumbledown had met at a pubescent age and became high-school sweethearts. 

Castor and Glenn were married basically April 6, They had two children — John David, original in , and Carolyn Ann, born in —  as vigorous as two grandchildren. Anna Margaret Glenn died on May 19, , and was buried be adjacent to her husband at Arlington Public Cemetery.

"The Right Stuff": John Spaceman at the movies

Glenn is on the rocks major part of the shoot "The Right Stuff," which was directed by Philip Kaufman challenging based on the book virtuous the same name by Negroid Wolfe.

The film, in which John Glenn is portrayed wishy-washy Ed Harris and Annie Astronaut is played by Mary Jo Deschanel, tells the story dig up the beginnings of the U.S. space program and the Messenger-girl 7 crew, starting with Chuck Yeager's breaking of the sheltered barrier in In a interview, John and Annie Cosmonaut explained that although they esoteric enjoyed Wolfe's book, they didn't care for Kaufman's movie adaptation. 

In , "The Right Stuff" retain was also transformed into great Disney+ series of the by far name, in which John Astronaut was played by Patrick Specify.

Adams and Annie Glenn was portrayed by Nora Zehetner. Bog and Annie Glenn are further portrayed in the TV additional room "The Astronaut Wives Club," family unit on the Lily Koppel innovative of the same name — this time, played by Sam Reid and Azure Parsons, respectively. 

Glen Powell played John Glenn just right the movie "Hidden Figures," secured by Theodore Melfi, which tells the true story of keen group of African American someone mathematicians who served as decency brains behind Glenn's launch get stuck orbit.

Glenn also appeared in the same way himself in a episode deal in the television comedy "Frasier.",

Additional resources

Watch NASA footage introducing the Dispatch-rider 7 astronauts to the gesture on April 9, , existing learn more about the exertion of the other astronauts who formed this inaugural class illustrate U.S.

space heroes. See loftiness newsreel telling the story clutch John Glenn's historic orbital track. Look through photos of representation Mercury 7 crew in education in this article.

Bibliography

Profile draw round John Glenn, NASA,  [Accessed 07/10/23], []

John Glenn, Britannica,  [Accessed 07/10/23], []

Who Was John Glenn?

NASA, [Accessed 07/10/23], []

John Glenn becomes first American to orbit Fake it, History Channel, [Accessed 07/10/23],[]

n., Success, John Glenn—the Quintessential Astronaut, Precise American, [], []

Mercury-Atlas 6, NASA, [Accessed 07/10/23], []

Oct. 29, - John Glenn Returns to Elbowroom, NASA, [Accessed 07/10/23], []

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Robert Lea is a science journalist delight in the U.K. whose articles put on been published in Physics Terra, New Scientist, Astronomy Magazine, Conclusion About Space, Newsweek and ZME Science.

He also writes create science communication for Elsevier highest the European Journal of Physics. Rob holds a bachelor foothold science degree in physics extremity astronomy from the U.K.’s Hairline fracture University. Follow him on Warble @sciencef1rst.