![[John Glenn enters capsule]](https://members.tripod.com/~spacefirst/friendship7/smallglennentersfriendship7.jpg)
Spacecraft: Mercury Capsule Friendship 7; Atlas D rocket
Launch Pad: LC-14, Cape Canaveral, Florida
Payload: Spacecraft No. 13; Launch Vehicle 109-D
Launch: 9:47 am EST, February 20, 1962
Orbit: 3 orbits completed at an altitude of 162.2 miles
Distance: 75, 679 miles
Velocity: 17,544 mph
Mission Duration: 0 days, 4 hours, 55 minutes, 23 seconds
Landing: February 20, 1962, 800 miles southeast of Bermuda.
With the first two American flights into space completed, no American had yet orbited the Earth. This changed on February 20, 1962, when Astronaut John H. Glenn orbited the Earth three times. This was completed but not without two major problems. The first was a yaw attitude control jet that clogged after the first orbit, forcing Glenn to control the spacecraft manually. The second was an alarm that indicated a loose heat shield. If this were true, then Glenn could possibly burn up during re-entry. To keep the heat shield in place, the retro rocket was retained so the straps would hold it in place long enough for Glenn to reenter. The plan worked, but was not needed when it was discovered the alarm was faulty and nothing was wrong with the heat shield. John Glenn made history by becoming the first American to orbit the Earth.
John H. Glenn, Jr.
John Glenn was born in Cambridge, Ohio, on July 18, 1921. He attended Muskingum College where he received a Bachelor of Science degree. Glenn was a pilot in World War II and in Korea, where he shot down three North Korean MIG fighters. He was selected as an astronaut by NASA in 1959 and flew two space missions. The first was the historic Mercury – Atlas 6 mission which made him the first American to orbit the Earth. 36 years later, a 77 year old Glenn became the oldest American to fly in space when he was a member of the STS-95 mission. Prior to his last spaceflight, Glenn served as a United States Senator from Ohio for three terms.
![[John Glenn]](https://members.tripod.com/~spacefirst/friendship7/smallglennmercurysuit.jpg)
Click here: Observation of Earth from Friendship 7.
Click here: Friendship 7 soon after its recovery.
Click here: Launch of the Mercury - Atlas 6 mission.
Click here: Patch for the Mercury - Atlas 6 mission.
Click here: Recovery of the Friendship 7 capsule.
Click here: A view of Astronaut John Glenn during his flight.
Click here: John Glenn enters the Friendship 7 capsule.
Click here: Portrait of Astronaut John H. Glenn, Jr.
Click here: Astronaut John Glenn in his Mercury spacesuit.
![[MA6 Earth Observation]](https://members.tripod.com/~spacefirst/friendship7/smallfriendship7earthobservation.jpg)
