Glenn, John

From New World Encyclopedia
 
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{{epname|Glenn, John}}
 
{{Infobox officeholder
 
{{Infobox officeholder
 
|name        = John Glenn
 
|name        = John Glenn
 
|image        = John Glenn Low Res.jpg
 
|image        = John Glenn Low Res.jpg
|office       = Chair of the [[United States Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs|Senate Governmental Affairs Committee]]
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|order       = Chair of the [[United States Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs|Senate Governmental Affairs Committee]]
 
|term_start  = January 3, 1987
 
|term_start  = January 3, 1987
 
|term_end    = January 3, 1995
 
|term_end    = January 3, 1995
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|successor    = William V. Roth Jr.
 
|successor    = William V. Roth Jr.
 
|state1      = [[List of United States Senators from Ohio|Ohio]]
 
|state1      = [[List of United States Senators from Ohio|Ohio]]
|jr/sr1      = United States Senator
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|order2      = United States Senator
|term_start1 = December 24, 1974
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|term_start2 = December 24, 1974
|term_end1   = January 3, 1999
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|term_end2   = January 3, 1999
|predecessor1 = [[Howard Metzenbaum]]
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|predecessor2 = [[Howard Metzenbaum]]
|successor1   = [[George Voinovich]]
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|successor2   = [[George Voinovich]]
 
|birth_name  = John Herschel Glenn Jr.
 
|birth_name  = John Herschel Glenn Jr.
 
|birth_date  = {{birth date|1921|7|18}}
 
|birth_date  = {{birth date|1921|7|18}}
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|death_place  = [[Columbus, Ohio]], U.S.
 
|death_place  = [[Columbus, Ohio]], U.S.
 
|party        = [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]]
 
|party        = [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]]
|spouse      = {{marriage|[[Annie Glenn|Annie Castor]]|()=small|1943|2016}}
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|spouse      = Annie Castor (m. 1943)
 
|children    = 2
 
|children    = 2
 
|alma_mater  = [[Muskingum University]] {{small|([[Bachelor of Science|BS]])}}<br/>[[University of Maryland, College Park|University of Maryland]]
 
|alma_mater  = [[Muskingum University]] {{small|([[Bachelor of Science|BS]])}}<br/>[[University of Maryland, College Park|University of Maryland]]
 
|awards      = [[Congressional Gold Medal]]<br/>[[Presidential Medal of Freedom]]<br/>[[Congressional Space Medal of Honor]]<br/>[[NASA Distinguished Service Medal]]
 
|awards      = [[Congressional Gold Medal]]<br/>[[Presidential Medal of Freedom]]<br/>[[Congressional Space Medal of Honor]]<br/>[[NASA Distinguished Service Medal]]
|branch      = [[United States Navy|U.S. Navy]]<br/>[[United States Marine Corps|U.S. Marine Corps]]
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}}
|serviceyears = 1941–1965
 
|rank        = [[File:US-O6 insignia.svg|25px]] [[Colonel (United States)|Colonel]]
 
|unit        = [[Marine Aircraft Group 15|VMJ-353]]<br/>[[VMO-155]]<br/>[[VMF-218]]<br/>[[VMA-311]]<br/>[[25th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron]]
 
|battles      = [[World War II]]<br/>[[Operation Beleaguer]]<br/>[[Korean War]]
 
|mawards      = {{Plainlist}}
 
* [[Distinguished Flying Cross (United States)|Distinguished Flying Cross]] (6)
 
* [[Air Medal]] (18)
 
* [[Presidential Unit Citation (United States)|Presidential Unit Citation]]
 
* [[Navy Unit Commendation]]
 
* [[American Campaign Medal]]
 
* [[Asiatic–Pacific Campaign Medal|Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal]]
 
* [[World War II Victory Medal (United States)|World War II Victory Medal]]
 
* [[China Service Medal]]
 
* [[Navy Occupation Service Medal]]
 
* [[National Defense Service Medal]]
 
* [[Korean Service Medal]]
 
* [[United Nations Korea Medal]]
 
* [[Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation]]
 
{{endplainlist}}}}
 
[[File:John Glenn Portrait.jpg|thumb|John Glenn NASA Portrait]]
 
[[File:JohnGlenn.jpg|thumb|John Glenn]]
 
  
 
'''John Herschel Glenn Jr.''' (July 18, 1921&nbsp;– December 8, 2016) was an American [[United States Marine Corps Aviation|aviator]], [[engineer]], [[astronaut]], and [[United States Senate|United States Senator]] from [[Ohio]]. In 1962 he was the first American to orbit the Earth, circling it three times. Before joining [[NASA]], Glenn was a distinguished fighter pilot in [[World War II]] and [[Korean War|Korea]] with six [[Distinguished Flying Cross (United States)|Distinguished Flying Crosses]] and eighteen [[Oak leaf cluster|clusters]] on his [[Air Medal]].
 
'''John Herschel Glenn Jr.''' (July 18, 1921&nbsp;– December 8, 2016) was an American [[United States Marine Corps Aviation|aviator]], [[engineer]], [[astronaut]], and [[United States Senate|United States Senator]] from [[Ohio]]. In 1962 he was the first American to orbit the Earth, circling it three times. Before joining [[NASA]], Glenn was a distinguished fighter pilot in [[World War II]] and [[Korean War|Korea]] with six [[Distinguished Flying Cross (United States)|Distinguished Flying Crosses]] and eighteen [[Oak leaf cluster|clusters]] on his [[Air Medal]].
  
He was one of the [[Mercury Seven]]: military [[test pilot]]s selected in 1959 by NASA as the United States' first astronauts. On February 20, 1962, Glenn flew the ''[[Mercury-Atlas 6|Friendship 7]]'' mission; the first American to orbit the Earth, he was the fifth person in space. He received the [[NASA Distinguished Service Medal]], the [[Congressional Space Medal of Honor]] in 1978, was inducted into the [[U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame]] in 1990, and was the last surviving member of the Mercury Seven.
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Glenn was one of the [[Mercury Seven]] military [[test pilot]]s selected in 1959 by NASA as the United States' first astronauts. On February 20, 1962, he flew the ''[[Mercury-Atlas 6|Friendship 7]]'' mission, becoming the first American to orbit the Earth and the fifth person in space. Glenn received the [[NASA Distinguished Service Medal]], the [[Congressional Space Medal of Honor]] in 1978, was inducted into the [[U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame]] in 1990, and was the last surviving member of the Mercury Seven.
  
After Glenn resigned from NASA in 1964 and retired from the Marine Corps the following year, he planned to run for a [[List of United States Senators from Ohio|U.S. Senate seat from Ohio]]. An injury in early 1964 forced his withdrawal, and he lost a close [[Primary elections in the United States|primary election]] in 1970. A member of the [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic Party]], Glenn first [[United States Senate election in Ohio, 1974|won election to the Senate in 1974]] and served for 24 years until January 3, 1999.
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Glenn resigned from NASA in 1964 and retired from the Marine Corps the following year to run for political office. A member of the [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic Party]], Glenn first [[United States Senate election in Ohio, 1974|won election to the Senate in 1974]] and served for 24 years until January 3, 1999.
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{{toc}}
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[[File:John Glenn Portrait.jpg|thumb|225px|John Glenn NASA Portrait]]
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[[File:JohnGlenn.jpg|thumb|225px|John Glenn]]
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In 1998, still a sitting senator, Glenn was the oldest person to fly in space as a crew member of the ''[[Space Shuttle Discovery|Discovery]]'' space shuttle and the only person to fly in both the Mercury and [[Space Shuttle program]]s. He received the [[Presidential Medal of Freedom]] in 2012 in recognition of his lifelong service to his country.
  
In 1998, still a sitting senator, Glenn was the oldest person to fly in space as a crew member of the [[Space Shuttle Discovery|''Discovery'']] space shuttle and the only person to fly in both the Mercury and [[Space Shuttle program]]s. He received the [[Presidential Medal of Freedom]] in 2012.
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==Early life and education==
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'''John Herschel Glenn Jr.''' was born on July 18, 1921 in [[Cambridge, Ohio|Cambridge]], [[Ohio]], the son of John Herschel Glenn, Sr. (1895–1966), owner of the Glenn Plumbing Company, and teacher Clara Teresa Sproat (1897–1971).<ref>[https://www.jfklibrary.org/asset-viewer/archives/JFKWHP/1962/Month%2002/Day%2023/JFKWHP-1962-02-23-B?image_identifier=JFKWHP-ST-A13-30-62 Parents of Astronaut John Glenn View Friendship 7 Space Capsule] John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum. Retrieved February 5, 2021.</ref> He was raised in nearby [[New Concord, Ohio|New Concord]]<ref name=Kupperberg>Paul Kupperberg, ''John Glenn: The First American in Orbit and His Return to Space'' (Rosen Publishing Group, 2004, ISBN 978-0823944606).</ref> with his adopted sister Jean.<ref name=Burgess>Colin Burgess, ''Friendship 7: The Epic Orbital Flight of John H. Glenn, Jr.'' (Springer, 2015, ISBN 978-3319156538).</ref> He attended New Concord Elementary School.<ref name=Glenn1>John H. Glenn and Nick Taylor, ''John Glenn: A Memoir'' (New York: Bantam Books, 2000, ISBN 978-0553581577).</ref>
  
==Early life and education==
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After graduating from [[John Glenn High School (New Concord, Ohio)|New Concord High School]] in 1939, Glenn studied [[engineering]] at [[Muskingum College]], where he was a member of the Stag Club fraternity.<ref>[https://nasa.fandom.com/wiki/John_Glenn John Glenn] ''NASA Fandom''. Retrieved February 5, 2021.</ref> He earned a [[private pilot license]] for credit in a [[physics]] course in 1941.<ref name=Tara>Tara Gray, [https://history.nasa.gov/40thmerc7/glenn.htm 40th Anniversary of Mercury 7: John Herschel Glenn, Jr.] ''The 40th Anniversary of the Mercury Seven''. Retrieved February 5, 2021.</ref> Glenn did not complete his senior year in residence due to becoming a fighter pilot during [[World War II]], nor did he take a proficiency exam, both required by the school for its [[Bachelor of Science]] degree. He later took courses at the University of Maryland, again without fulfilling the graduation requirements. In 1960, he became concerned about his lack of qualifications when [[NASA]] was selecting astronauts for the Mercury program and petitioned Muskingum to receive a degree. His petition was rejected, but Muskingum awarded Glenn an honorary doctorate after his [[Mercury Atlas 6|Mercury space flight]]; they subsequently approved his petition and awarded his bachelors degree in February, 1962.<ref name="NewLondonDay">[https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1915&dat=19831004&id=l0RSAAAAIBAJ&sjid=KzYNAAAAIBAJ&pg=3816,773331 College says Glenn degree was deserved] ''The Day'', October 4, 1983. Retrieved February 5, 2021.</ref>
Glenn was born on July 18, 1921 in [[Cambridge, Ohio|Cambridge]], [[Ohio]], the son of John Herschel Glenn, Sr. (1895–1966, owner of the Glenn Plumbing Company) and teacher Clara Teresa Sproat (1897–1971),<ref>[https://www.jfklibrary.org/Asset-Viewer/Archives/JFKWHP-ST-A13-30-62.aspx Parents of Astronaut John Glenn View Friendship 7 Space Capsule] John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum. Retrieved January 12, 2017.</ref> and was raised in nearby [[New Concord, Ohio|New Concord]]<ref name=Kupperberg>Paul Kupperberg, ''John Glenn: The First American in Orbit and His Return to Space'' (Rosen Publishing Group, 2004, ISBN 978-0823944606).</ref> with his adopted sister Jean.<ref name=Burgess>Colin Burgess, ''Friendship 7: The Epic Orbital Flight of John H. Glenn, Jr.'' (Springer, 2015, ISBN 978-3319156538).</ref> He attended New Concord Elementary School.<ref name=Glenn1>John H. Glenn and Nick Taylor, ''John Glenn: A Memoir'' (New York: Bantam Books, 2000, ISBN 978-0553581577).</ref>
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[[File:Annie and John Glenn 1965.jpg|thumb|225px|Annie and John Glenn in 1965]]
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On April 6, 1943 Glenn married his high school sweetheart, [[Annie Glenn|Anna Margaret Castor]] (1920-2020), who also attended [[Muskingum College]]. They had two children—John David (b. 1945) and Carolyn Ann (b. 1947)—and two grandchildren,<ref name=Kupperberg/> and remained married for 73 years until his death. Glenn's NASA friend, [[Charles Bolden]], was inspired by the marriage. "For anyone who's contemplating marriage, you ought to go to school on the Glenns, because they can teach us a lot about what unending love, with undying respect and admiration for each other means&nbsp;... There was never a question whether Annie was the love of his life."<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cj6EkDzO1aA%3Bt%3D5m30s NASA Remembers American Legend John Glenn] ''NASA'', December 8, 2016. Retrieved February 5, 2021.</ref>
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A [[Freemasonry|Freemason]], Glenn was a member of Concord Lodge #688 in New Concord, Ohio. He received all of his degrees in full in a "Mason at Sight" ceremony from the Grand Master of Ohio in 1978, fourteen years after petitioning his lodge. In 1998, Glenn became a 32nd-degree [[Scottish Rite]] Mason in the Valley of Cincinnati (NMJ); the following year, he received the 33rd degree of the Scottish Rite.<ref>Christopher Hodapp, [http://freemasonsfordummies.blogspot.com/2016/12/illus-brother-john-h-glenn-jr.html Illus. Brother John H. Glenn, Jr.] December 10, 2016. Retrieved February 5, 2021.</ref>
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Glenn was an ordained elder of the [[Presbyterian Church (USA)|Presbyterian Church]].<ref name=Kupperberg/> Although his religious faith was kindled before he became an astronaut, it was reinforced after he traveled in space. "To look out at this kind of creation and not believe in God is to me impossible," said Glenn after his second space voyage.<ref> Julie Zauzmer, [https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/acts-of-faith/wp/2016/12/08/in-outer-space-john-glenn-saw-the-face-of-god/ In space, John Glenn saw the face of God: 'It just strengthens my faith'] ''Washington Post'', December 8, 2016. Retrieved February 5, 2021.</ref> He saw no contradiction between belief in God and the knowledge that evolution is "a fact," and believed that evolution should be taught in schools: "I don't see that I'm any less religious by the fact that I can appreciate the fact that science just records that we change with evolution and time, and that's a fact. It doesn't mean it's less wondrous and it doesn't mean that there can't be some power greater than any of us that has been behind and is behind whatever is going on."<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20160310191231/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/05/20/john-glenn-evolution_n_7343168.html John Glenn Says Evolution Should Be Taught In Schools] ''The Huffington Post'', May 20, 2015. Retrieved February 5, 2021.</ref>
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Glenn was an original owner of a [[Holiday Inn]] franchise near [[Orlando, Florida|Orlando]], Florida, which is today the [[Seralago Hotel & Suites Main Gate East]].<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20140222222151/http://www.seralagohotel.com/hotel/seralago-history.php The History of our Kissimmee Family Hotel]. Retrieved February 5, 2021.</ref> Glenn's business partner was [[Henri Landwirth]], a [[Holocaust]] survivor.<ref name=NYMag>Michael Kramer, "John Glenn: The Right Stuff," ''New York Magazine'', January 31, 1983.</ref> He remembered learning about Landwirth's background: "Henri doesn't talk about it much. It was years before he spoke about it with me and then only because of an accident. We were down in Florida during the space program. Everyone was wearing short-sleeved Ban-Lon shirts, everyone but Henri. Then one day I saw Henri at the pool and noticed the number on his arm. I told Henri that if it were me I'd wear that number like a medal with a spotlight on it."<ref name=NYMag/>
  
After graduating from [[John Glenn High School (New Concord, Ohio)|New Concord High School]] in 1939, Glenn studied [[engineering]] at [[Muskingum College]]. He earned a [[private pilot license]] for credit in a [[physics]] course in 1941.<ref name=Tara>Tara Gray, [http://history.nasa.gov/40thmerc7/glenn.htm 40th Anniversary of Mercury 7: John Herschel Glenn, Jr.] ''The 40th Anniversary of the Mercury Seven''. Retrieved January 12, 2017.</ref> Glenn did not complete his senior year in residence due to becoming a fighter pilot during [[World War II]] or take a proficiency exam, both required by the school for its [[Bachelor of Science]] degree. He later took courses at the University of Maryland, again without fulfilling the graduation requirements. In 1960, he became concerned about his lack of a degree when [[NASA]] was selecting astronauts for the Mercury program and petitioned Muskingum to receive a degree. His petition was rejected, but Muskingum awarded Glenn an honorary doctorate after his [[Mercury Atlas 6|Mercury space flight]]; they subsequently approved his petition and awarded his bachelors degree in February, 1962.<ref name="NewLondonDay">[https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1915&dat=19831004&id=l0RSAAAAIBAJ&sjid=KzYNAAAAIBAJ&pg=3816,773331 College says Glenn degree was deserved]''The Day'', October 4, 1983. Retrieved January 12, 2017.</ref>
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In June 2014, Glenn underwent successful [[heart valve replacement]] surgery at the [[Cleveland Clinic]].<ref>John Newsome and Joshua Berlinger, [https://www.cnn.com/2014/06/12/us/john-glenn-sucessful-heart-surgery/index.html John Glenn undergoes successful heart surgery] ''CNN'', June 12, 2014. Retrieved February 5, 2021.</ref> In early December 2016, he was hospitalized at [[the James Cancer Hospital]] of [[Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center]] in Columbus.<ref> Ashley Strickland, [https://www.cnn.com/2016/12/07/health/john-glenn-hospitalized/index.html Former senator, astronaut John Glenn hospitalized] ''CNN'', December 7, 2016. Retrieved Feebruary 5, 2021.</ref> Glenn died on December 8, 2016, at the OSU Wexner Medical Center.<ref name="dispatchobit">Joe Hallett, [https://www.timesreporter.com/news/20161208/john-glenn-american-hero-aviation-icon-and-former-us-senator-dies-at-95?template=ampart John Glenn, American hero, aviation icon and former U.S. senator, dies at 95] ''The Columbus Dispatch'', December 8, 2016. Retrieved February 5, 2021.</ref> He was interred in a private ceremony at [[Arlington National Cemetery]] after lying in state at the [[Ohio Statehouse]] and a public memorial service was held at Mershon Auditorium at Ohio State University.<ref name="dispatchobit"/>
  
 
==Military career==
 
==Military career==
  
 
===World War II===
 
===World War II===
When the [[Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor]] brought the United States into [[World War II]], Glenn quit college to enlist in the [[United States Army Air Corps|U.S. Army Air Corps]]. Never called to duty, in March 1942 enlisted as a [[United States Navy|U.S. Navy]] [[Aviation Cadet Training Program (USN)|aviation cadet]]. Glenn attended the [[University of Iowa]] in [[Iowa City, Iowa|Iowa City]] for pre-flight training and continued at [[Naval Air Station Olathe]] in [[Kansas]] for primary training, where he made his first solo flight in a military aircraft. During advanced training at [[Naval Air Station Corpus Christi]] in Texas, he accepted an offer to transfer to the [[United States Marine Corps|U.S. Marine Corps]].
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When the [[Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor]] brought the United States into [[World War II]], Glenn quit college to enlist in the [[United States Army Air Corps|U.S. Army Air Corps]]. Never called to duty, in March 1942 he enlisted as a [[United States Navy|U.S. Navy]] [[Aviation Cadet Training Program (USN)|aviation cadet]]. Glenn attended the [[University of Iowa]] in [[Iowa City, Iowa|Iowa City]] for pre-flight training and continued at [[Naval Air Station Olathe]] in [[Kansas]] for primary training, where he made his first solo flight in a military aircraft. During advanced training at [[Naval Air Station Corpus Christi]] in Texas, he accepted an offer to transfer to the [[United States Marine Corps|U.S. Marine Corps]].
  
 
Completing his training in March 1943, Glenn was commissioned as a [[second lieutenant]]. After advanced training at [[Camp Kearny]], California, he was assigned to Marine Squadron [[VMJ-353]] and flew [[R4D]] transport planes. Glenn was posted to the [[Marine Corps Air Station El Centro]] in California in July 1943 and joined [[VMO-155]], which flew the [[Grumman F4F Wildcat|F4F Wildcat]] [[Fighter aircraft|fighter]].<ref name=Burgess/> VMO-155 re-equipped with the [[Vought F4U Corsair|F4U Corsair]] in September 1943.<ref name=Glenn1/>
 
Completing his training in March 1943, Glenn was commissioned as a [[second lieutenant]]. After advanced training at [[Camp Kearny]], California, he was assigned to Marine Squadron [[VMJ-353]] and flew [[R4D]] transport planes. Glenn was posted to the [[Marine Corps Air Station El Centro]] in California in July 1943 and joined [[VMO-155]], which flew the [[Grumman F4F Wildcat|F4F Wildcat]] [[Fighter aircraft|fighter]].<ref name=Burgess/> VMO-155 re-equipped with the [[Vought F4U Corsair|F4U Corsair]] in September 1943.<ref name=Glenn1/>
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He was promoted to [[First lieutenant#U.S. Army, U.S. Marine Corps and U.S. Air Force|first lieutenant]] in October 1943, and shipped out to Hawaii in January 1944.<ref name=Burgess/> It was intended that VMO-155 would move to the [[Marshall Islands]] but this was delayed, and on February 21 it moved to [[Midway Atoll]] and became part of the garrison.<ref name=Glenn1/> Beginning in June 1944, stationed in the [[Marshall Islands]], Glenn flew over 50 combat missions in the area.<ref name=Burgess/> Hit by anti-aircraft fire five times, he received two [[Distinguished Flying Cross (United States)|Distinguished Flying Cross]]es and ten [[Air Medal]]s.
 
He was promoted to [[First lieutenant#U.S. Army, U.S. Marine Corps and U.S. Air Force|first lieutenant]] in October 1943, and shipped out to Hawaii in January 1944.<ref name=Burgess/> It was intended that VMO-155 would move to the [[Marshall Islands]] but this was delayed, and on February 21 it moved to [[Midway Atoll]] and became part of the garrison.<ref name=Glenn1/> Beginning in June 1944, stationed in the [[Marshall Islands]], Glenn flew over 50 combat missions in the area.<ref name=Burgess/> Hit by anti-aircraft fire five times, he received two [[Distinguished Flying Cross (United States)|Distinguished Flying Cross]]es and ten [[Air Medal]]s.
  
Glenn returned to the United States at the end of his one-year tour of duty in 1945, and was assigned to [[Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point]] in North Carolina and then to [[Naval Air Station Patuxent River]] in Maryland. Although he was promoted to [[Captain (United States O-3)|captain]] in July 1945, shortly before the [[Pacific War]]'s end, he was uncertain of a regular commission in the Marine Corps. Glenn was ordered back to Cherry Point, joined [[VMF-913]] (another Corsair squadron), and learned that he qualified for a regular commission.<ref name=Glenn1/><ref name=Burgess/>
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Glenn returned to the United States at the end of his one-year tour of duty in 1945, and was assigned to [[Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point]] in North Carolina and then to [[Naval Air Station Patuxent River]] in Maryland. He was promoted to [[Captain (United States O-3)|captain]] in July 1945, shortly before the [[Pacific War]]'s end. Glenn was ordered back to Cherry Point, where he joined [[VMF-913]] (another Corsair squadron).<ref name=Glenn1/><ref name=Burgess/>
  
 
In March 1946, he was assigned to [[Marine Corps Air Station El Toro]] in southern California. Glenn volunteered for service with the [[Operation Beleaguer|occupation in North China]], believing that it would be a short tour. He joined [[VMF-218]], yet another Corsair squadron (based at [[Beijing Nanyuan Airport|Nanyuan Field]] near [[Beijing]]), in December 1946.<ref name=Glenn1/> Glenn flew patrol missions until VMF-218 was transferred to [[Guam]] in March 1947, and he returned home in December 1948.
 
In March 1946, he was assigned to [[Marine Corps Air Station El Toro]] in southern California. Glenn volunteered for service with the [[Operation Beleaguer|occupation in North China]], believing that it would be a short tour. He joined [[VMF-218]], yet another Corsair squadron (based at [[Beijing Nanyuan Airport|Nanyuan Field]] near [[Beijing]]), in December 1946.<ref name=Glenn1/> Glenn flew patrol missions until VMF-218 was transferred to [[Guam]] in March 1947, and he returned home in December 1948.
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===Korean War===
 
===Korean War===
Glenn was ordered to [[South Korea]] in October 1952, late in the [[Korean War]]. On February 3, 1953 he reported to [[Pohang Airport|K-3]] and was assigned to [[VMF-311]], one of two Marine fighter squadrons there, as its operations officer. VMF-311, equipped with the [[F9F Panther]] jet [[fighter-bomber]], was assigned a variety of missions. Glenn flew his first, a reconnaissance flight, on February 26.<ref name=Glenn1/>
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[[File:Colonel John Glenn official photo.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Military portrait of Glenn]]
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Glenn was ordered to [[South Korea]] in October 1952, late in the [[Korean War]]. On February 3, 1953 he reported to [[Pohang Airport|K-3]] and was assigned to [[VMF-311]], one of two Marine fighter squadrons there, as its operations officer. VMF-311, equipped with the [[F9F Panther]] jet [[fighter-bomber]], was assigned a variety of missions. He flew 63 combat missions in Korea with VMF-311,<ref name=Glenn1/> and was nicknamed "Magnet Ass" because of his ability to attract enemy [[flak]] (an occupational hazard of low-level [[close air support]] missions); twice he returned to base with over 250 holes in his plane.<ref>Peter B. Mersky, ''U.S. Marine Corps Aviation — 1912 to the present'' (Annapolis, MD: The Nautical and Aviation Publishing Company of America, 1983, ISBN 978-0933852396).</ref> Glenn flew for a time with Marine reservist [[Ted Williams]] (a future [[Baseball Hall of Fame|Hall of Fame]] baseball player with the [[Boston Red Sox]]) as his [[wingman]],<ref name=Glenn1/> and also flew with future major general [[Ralph H. Spanjer]].<ref>Meg McSherry Breslin, [https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1999-02-12-9902120350-story.html Ralph H. Spanjer, 78: Led Military Academy] ''Chicago Tribune'', February 12, 1999. Retrieved February 5, 2021.</ref>
  
[[File:Colonel John Glenn official photo.jpg|thumb|left|upright|alt=Black-and-white photo|Military portrait of Glenn]]
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Glenn had applied for an inter-service exchange position with the [[United States Air Force|U.S. Air Force]] to fly the [[North American F-86 Sabre|F-86 Sabre]] jet [[fighter-interceptor]]. In June 1953 he reported for duty with the [[25th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron]], and flew 27 combat missions in the faster F-86. Glenn shot down his first [[MiG-15]]s in a [[dogfight]] on July 12, 1953. A second battle followed on July 19, and a third (during which four Sabres shot down three MiGs) on July 22. These were the final air victories of the war, which ended with an [[armistice]] five days later.<ref name=Glenn1/> For his service in Korea, Glenn received two more Distinguished Flying Crosses and eight more Air Medals.<ref name=USAToday>John Faherty, [https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2016/12/08/john-glenn-astronaut-and-senator-dead-age-95/95155500/ John Glenn, astronaut and senator, dead at age 95] ''USA Today'', December 8, 2016. Retrieved February 5, 2021.</ref><ref name=Burgess/>
He flew 63 combat missions in Korea with VMF-311,<ref name=Glenn1/> and was nicknamed "Magnet Ass" because of his ability to attract enemy [[flak]] (an occupational hazard of low-level [[close air support]] missions); twice, he returned to base with over 250 holes in his plane.<ref>Peter B. Mersky, ''U.S. Marine Corps Aviation — 1912 to the present'' (Annapolis, MD: The Nautical and Aviation Publishing Company of America, 1983, ISBN 978-0933852396).</ref> Glenn flew for a time with Marine reservist [[Ted Williams]] (a future [[Baseball Hall of Fame|Hall of Fame]] baseball player with the [[Boston Red Sox]]) as his [[wingman]],<ref name=Glenn1/> and also flew with future major general [[Ralph H. Spanjer]].<ref>Meg McSherry Breslin, [http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1999-02-12/news/9902120350_1_long-military-career-boarding-marine-corps Ralph H. Spanjer, 78: Led Military Academy] ''Chicago Tribune'', February 12, 1999. Retrieved January 13, 2017.</ref>
 
  
Before he left for Korea, Glenn applied for an inter-service exchange position with the [[United States Air Force|U.S. Air Force]] to fly the [[North American F-86 Sabre|F-86 Sabre]] jet [[fighter-interceptor]]. In preparation, he arranged with Colonel Leon W. Gray to check out the F-86 at [[Otis Air Force Base]] in [[Massachusetts]].<ref name=Glenn1/> Glenn later wrote, "Since the days of the [[Lafayette Escadrille]] during [[World War I]], pilots have viewed air-to-air combat as the ultimate test not only of their machines but of their own personal determination and flying skills. I was no exception."<ref name=Glenn1/> In June 1953 he reported for duty with the [[25th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron]], and flew 27 combat missions in the faster F-86.
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Glenn later wrote:
 
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<blockquote>Since the days of the [[Lafayette Escadrille]] during [[World War I]], pilots have viewed air-to-air combat as the ultimate test not only of their machines but of their own personal determination and flying skills. I was no exception.<ref name=Glenn1/></blockquote>
Glenn shot down his first [[MiG-15]]s in a [[dogfight]] on July 12, 1953. A second battle followed on July 19, and a third (during which four Sabres shot down three MiGs) on July 22. These were the final air victories of the war, which ended with an armistice five days later.<ref name=Glenn1/> For his service in Korea, Glenn received two more Distinguished Flying Crosses and eight more Air Medals.<ref name=USAToday>John Faherty, [http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2016/12/08/john-glenn-astronaut-and-senator-dead-age-95/95155500/ John Glenn, astronaut and senator, dead at age 95] ''USA Today'', December 8, 2016. Retrieved January 13, 2017.</ref><ref name=Burgess/>
 
  
 
===Test pilot===
 
===Test pilot===
[[File:F-86 'MiG Mad Marine'.jpg|thumb|right|alt=Glenn's fighter plane on the tarmac|Glenn's USAF [[North American F-86 Sabre|F-86F]], dubbed "MiG Mad Marine", during the Korean War in 1953]]
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[[File:F-86 'MiG Mad Marine'.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Glenn's USAF [[North American F-86 Sabre|F-86F]], dubbed "MiG Mad Marine", during the Korean War in 1953]]
With combat experience as a fighter pilot, Glenn applied for training as a [[flight test|test pilot]] while he was still in Korea. He reported to the [[U.S. Naval Test Pilot School]] at NAS Patuxent River in Maryland in January 1954, and graduated in July.<ref name=Glenn1/><ref> Steve Vogel, [https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/1998/06/07/pax-river-yields-a-constellation-of-astronaut-candidates/46422314-1408-4c29-852b-2786d40e82a5/ Pax River Yields a Constellation of Astronaut Candidates] ''The Washington Post'', June 7, 1998. Retrieved January 13, 2017. </ref>
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With his combat experience as a fighter pilot, Glenn applied for training as a [[flight test|test pilot]] while he was still in Korea. He reported to the [[U.S. Naval Test Pilot School]] at NAS Patuxent River in Maryland in January 1954, and graduated in July.<ref name=Glenn1/><ref> Steve Vogel, [https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/1998/06/07/pax-river-yields-a-constellation-of-astronaut-candidates/46422314-1408-4c29-852b-2786d40e82a5/ Pax River Yields a Constellation of Astronaut Candidates] ''The Washington Post'', June 7, 1998. Retrieved February 5, 2021. </ref>
  
Glenn's first assignment was testing the [[North American FJ-2/-3 Fury|FJ-3 Fury]], a Navy version of the F-86 Sabre which nearly killed him when its cockpit depressurized and its oxygen system failed.<ref name=Glenn1/> He also tested the armament of aircraft such as the [[Vought F7U Cutlass]] and [[Vought F-8 Crusader|F8U Crusader]]. From November 1956 to April 1959, Glenn was assigned to the Fighter Design Branch of the Navy [[Bureau of Aeronautics]] in [[Washington, D.C.]] and attended the [[University of Maryland, College Park|University of Maryland]].<ref name="NASA Bio">[http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios//htmlbios/glenn-j.html Astronaut Bio: John Glenn, Jr. 1/99] NASA, January 1999. Retrieved January 13, 2017.</ref>
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Glenn's first assignment was testing the [[North American FJ-2/-3 Fury|FJ-3 Fury]], a Navy version of the F-86 Sabre which nearly killed him when its cockpit depressurized and its oxygen system failed.<ref name=Glenn1/> He also tested the armament of aircraft such as the [[Vought F7U Cutlass]] and [[Vought F-8 Crusader|F8U Crusader]]. From November 1956 to April 1959, Glenn was assigned to the Fighter Design Branch of the Navy [[Bureau of Aeronautics]] in [[Washington, D.C.]] and attended the [[University of Maryland, College Park|University of Maryland]].<ref name="NASA Bio">Brian Dunbar, [https://www.nasa.gov/content/profile-of-john-glenn Profile of John Glenn] ''NASA'', August 3, 2017. Retrieved February 5, 2021.</ref>
  
 
On July 16, 1957 he made the first [[supersonic]] [[transcontinental flight]],<ref>
 
On July 16, 1957 he made the first [[supersonic]] [[transcontinental flight]],<ref>
Jason Rhian, [http://www.spaceflightinsider.com/space-flight-news/silent-seven-john-glenn-last-mercury-astronaut-dies-at-95/ Silent Seven: John Glenn, last Mercury astronaut, dies at 95 – SpaceFlight Insider] ''Spaceflight Insider'', December 8, 2016. Retrieved January 13, 2017.</ref> At that time, the transcontinental speed record, held by an Air Force [[Republic F-84 Thunderjet]], was 3 hours 45 minutes and Glenn calculated that an F8U Crusader could do it faster. Since its {{convert|586|mph|adj=on}} air speed was faster than that of a [[.45 caliber ammunition|.45 caliber bullet]], Glenn called his project ''Project Bullet''.<ref name=Glenn1/> flying an F8U Crusader {{convert|2445|mi}} from [[Los Alamitos Army Airfield|Los Alamitos, California]] to [[Floyd Bennett Field]] in [[New York City]] in under {{frac|3|1|2}} hours. The actual time was 3 hours, 23 minutes and 8.3 seconds,<ref name="NASA Bio" /> averaging supersonic speed despite three [[Aerial refueling|in-flight refuelings]] when speeds dropped below {{convert|300|mph}}. Glenn's on-board camera took the first continuous, transcontinental [[Panoramic photography|panoramic photograph]] of the United States. When he flew over his hometown, a child reportedly ran to the Glenn house and yelled "Johnny dropped a bomb!" as his sonic boom shook the town.<ref name=Glenn1/>  <ref>Suzanne Deffree, [http://www.edn.com/electronics-blogs/edn-moments/4390414/-Project-Bullet—sets-transcontinental-speed-record-set—July-16--1957 'Project Bullet' sets transcontinental speed record] ''EDN'', July 16, 2012. Retrieved January 13, 2017.</ref> Glenn received his fifth [[Distinguished Flying Cross (United States)|Distinguished Flying Cross]] for this mission,<ref name=Glenn1/> and he was promoted to [[lieutenant colonel (United States)|lieutenant colonel]] on April 1, 1959.<ref name=Burgess/> He now had nearly 9,000 hours of flying time, including about 3,000 hours in jets.<ref name="NASA Bio" />
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Jason Rhian, [https://www.spaceflightinsider.com/obituary/silent-seven-john-glenn-last-mercury-astronaut-dies-at-95/ Silent Seven: John Glenn, last Mercury astronaut, dies at 95 – SpaceFlight Insider] ''Spaceflight Insider'', December 8, 2016. Retrieved February 5, 2021.</ref> At that time, the transcontinental speed record, held by an Air Force [[Republic F-84 Thunderjet]], was 3 hours 45 minutes and Glenn calculated that an F8U Crusader could do it faster. Since its {{convert|586|mph|adj=on}} air speed was faster than that of a [[.45 caliber ammunition|.45 caliber bullet]], Glenn called his project ''Project Bullet''.<ref name=Glenn1/> His flight time was 3 hours, 23 minutes and 8.3 seconds,<ref name="NASA Bio" /> averaging supersonic speed despite three [[Aerial refueling|in-flight refuelings]] when speeds dropped below {{convert|300|mph}}. Glenn's on-board camera took the first continuous, transcontinental [[Panoramic photography|panoramic photograph]] of the United States. When he flew over his hometown, a child reportedly ran to the Glenn house and yelled "Johnny dropped a bomb!" as his sonic boom shook the town.<ref name=Glenn1/>  <ref>Suzanne Deffree, [https://www.edn.com/project-bullet-sets-transcontinental-speed-record-july-16-1957/ 'Project Bullet' sets transcontinental speed record] ''EDN'', July 16, 2012. Retrieved February 5, 2021.</ref> Glenn received his fifth [[Distinguished Flying Cross (United States)|Distinguished Flying Cross]] for this mission,<ref name=Glenn1/> and he was promoted to [[lieutenant colonel (United States)|lieutenant colonel]] on April 1, 1959.<ref name=Burgess/> He now had nearly 9,000 hours of flying time, including about 3,000 hours in jets.<ref name="NASA Bio" />
  
 
==NASA career==
 
==NASA career==
 
===Pre-selection===
 
===Pre-selection===
[[File:GPN-2000-001027.jpg|thumb|upright|alt=Glenn in a silver spacesuit|Glenn in his [[Navy Mark IV|Mercury spacesuit]]]]
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[[File:GPN-2000-001027.jpg|thumb|200px|Glenn in his [[Navy Mark IV|Mercury spacesuit]]]]
 
While Glenn was on duty at Patuxent and in Washington, he began reading everything he could find about space. His office was asked to send a test pilot to [[Langley Air Force Base]] in Virginia to make runs on a spaceflight simulator, part of NASA research of reentry-vehicle shapes. The pilot would also be sent to the Naval Air Development Center in [[Johnsville, Pennsylvania]], and would be subjected to high [[g-force]]s in a [[centrifuge]] for comparison with data collected in the simulator. Glenn's request for the position was granted, and he spent several days at Langley and a week in Johnsville for the testing.<ref name=Tara/>
 
While Glenn was on duty at Patuxent and in Washington, he began reading everything he could find about space. His office was asked to send a test pilot to [[Langley Air Force Base]] in Virginia to make runs on a spaceflight simulator, part of NASA research of reentry-vehicle shapes. The pilot would also be sent to the Naval Air Development Center in [[Johnsville, Pennsylvania]], and would be subjected to high [[g-force]]s in a [[centrifuge]] for comparison with data collected in the simulator. Glenn's request for the position was granted, and he spent several days at Langley and a week in Johnsville for the testing.<ref name=Tara/>
  
Line 114: Line 105:
  
 
====''Friendship 7'' flight====
 
====''Friendship 7'' flight====
[[File:John Glenn parade NASA.jpg|thumb|right|250px|alt=A smiling Glenn in the back seat of a limo with John F. Kennedy and General Leighton I. Davis|Glenn ''(center)'' with President John F. Kennedy and General Leighton I. Davis, celebrating his orbital flight in 1962]]
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[[File:Glenn62.jpg|thumb|250px|John Glen during his flight in Friendship 7 as he uses a photometer to view the sun]]
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[[File:John Glenn parade NASA.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Glenn ''(center)'' with President John F. Kennedy and General Leighton I. Davis, celebrating his orbital flight in 1962]]
 
The flight took off on February 20, 1962 from [[Cape Canaveral Air Force Station]]. There were eleven delays during the countdown due to equipment malfunctions, improvements to equipment functioning properly and the weather. During Glenn's first orbit, a scheduled 30-minute test to see if he could fly the spacecraft manually became significant when a failure of the automatic-control system was detected at the end of the first orbit; this forced Glenn to operate in manual mode for the second and third orbits and re-entry.<ref name="nasaambass" />
 
The flight took off on February 20, 1962 from [[Cape Canaveral Air Force Station]]. There were eleven delays during the countdown due to equipment malfunctions, improvements to equipment functioning properly and the weather. During Glenn's first orbit, a scheduled 30-minute test to see if he could fly the spacecraft manually became significant when a failure of the automatic-control system was detected at the end of the first orbit; this forced Glenn to operate in manual mode for the second and third orbits and re-entry.<ref name="nasaambass" />
  
Later in the flight, telemetry indicated that the [[ablative heat shield|heat shield]] had loosened. If the telemetry was correct, Glenn's spacecraft would probably have been destroyed during [[re-entry]] from the intense heat.<ref name="nasaambass" /> Flight controllers had him modify his re-entry procedure by keeping his [[retrorocket]] pack over the shield to help retain it during re-entry. Leaving the retrorocket pack on made large chunks of flaming debris fly past the window of his capsule during re-entry, although Glenn thought it might have been the heat shield. He told an interviewer, "Fortunately it was the rocket pack—or I wouldn't be answering these questions."<ref name="nasaambass" /> After the flight, it was determined that the indicator was faulty.<ref name=CBS/>
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Later in the flight, telemetry indicated that the [[ablative heat shield|heat shield]] had loosened. If the telemetry was correct, Glenn's spacecraft would probably have been destroyed during [[re-entry]] from the intense heat.<ref name="nasaambass" /> Flight controllers had him modify his re-entry procedure by keeping his [[retrorocket]] pack over the shield to help retain it during re-entry. Leaving the retrorocket pack on made large chunks of flaming debris fly past the window of his capsule during re-entry, although Glenn thought it might have been the heat shield. He told an interviewer, "Fortunately it was the rocket pack—or I wouldn't be answering these questions."<ref name="nasaambass" /> After the flight, it was determined that the indicator was faulty.<ref name=CBS>[https://www.cbsnews.com/news/john-glenn-stirs-controversy/ John Glenn Stirs Controversy] ''CBS'', October 8, 1998. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref>
  
''Friendship 7'' safely [[Splashdown|splashed down]] {{convert|800|mi|-1}} southeast of Cape Canaveral after Glenn's 4-hour, 55-minute flight.<ref name=Tara /> The spacecraft landed {{convert|41|mi}} west and {{convert|19|mi}} north of the target landing site. ''Friendship 7'' was recovered by the {{USS|Noa|DD-841|6}}, which had the spacecraft on the deck 21 minutes after landing; Glenn was in the capsule during the recovery operation. He carried a note on the flight which read, "I am a stranger. I come in peace. Take me to your leader and there will be a massive reward for you in eternity" in several languages, in case he landed near southern [[Pacific Ocean]] islands.<ref name="nmspacemuseum" /> Although the original procedure called for Glenn to exit through the top hatch, he was uncomfortably warm and decided that egress through the side hatch would be faster.<ref name=Tara/><ref name="nmspacemuseum" /> During the flight, he endured 7.8 [[g-force|G's]] of acceleration and traveled {{convert|75679|mi}}<!-- statute miles—> at about {{convert|17500|mph}}.<ref name=Tara/> The flight took Glenn to a maximum altitude (apogee) of about {{convert|162|mi}} and a minimum altitude of {{convert|100|mi}} (perigee) at a speed of about {{convert|17500|mph}}.<ref name="nmspacemuseum">[http://www.nmspacemuseum.org/halloffame/detail.php?id=38 John H. Glenn Jr.] New Mexico Museum of Space History. Retrieved January 17, 2017.</ref>
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''Friendship 7'' safely [[Splashdown|splashed down]] {{convert|800|mi|-1}} southeast of Cape Canaveral after Glenn's 4-hour, 55-minute flight.<ref name=Tara /> The spacecraft landed {{convert|41|mi}} west and {{convert|19|mi}} north of the target landing site. ''Friendship 7'' was recovered by the {{USS|Noa|DD-841|6}}, which had the spacecraft on the deck 21 minutes after landing; Glenn was in the capsule during the recovery operation. He carried a note on the flight which read, "I am a stranger. I come in peace. Take me to your leader and there will be a massive reward for you in eternity" in several languages, in case he landed near southern [[Pacific Ocean]] islands. The flight took Glenn to a maximum altitude (apogee) of about {{convert|162|mi}} and a minimum altitude of {{convert|100|mi}} (perigee) at a speed of about {{convert|17500|mph}}.<ref name="nmspacemuseum">[https://www.nmspacemuseum.org/inductee/john-h-glenn-jr/ John H. Glenn Jr.] ''New Mexico Museum of Space History''. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref>
  
[[File:Astronaut John Glenn being Honored - GPN-2000-000607.jpg|thumb|250px|alt+Dignitaries on an outdoor stage|Glenn is honored by [[President of the United States|President]] [[John F. Kennedy|Kennedy]] at temporary [[Manned Spacecraft Center]] facilities at [[Cape Canaveral, Florida]], three days after his flight.]]
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[[File:Astronaut John Glenn being Honored - GPN-2000-000607.jpg|thumb|250px|Glenn is honored by [[President of the United States|President]] [[John F. Kennedy|Kennedy]] at temporary [[Manned Spacecraft Center]] facilities at [[Cape Canaveral, Florida]], three days after his flight.]]
The flight made Glenn the first American to [[orbit]] the Earth;<ref>[http://www.nasa.gov/centers/glenn/about/bios/mercury_mission.html Glenn Orbits the Earth] NASA, February 16, 2012. Retrieved January 17, 2017.</ref> the third American in space, he was the fifth human in space.<ref name=CBS/><ref name="nmspacemuseum"/> [[Perth]], [[Western Australia]], became known worldwide as the "City of Light" when residents turned on their house, car, and streetlights as Glenn passed overhead.<ref>[http://museum.wa.gov.au/city-lights City of light – 50 years in Space] Western Australian Museum. Retrieved January 17, 2017.</ref> The city repeated the act when Glenn rode the [[Space Shuttle]] in 1998.<ref>[http://www.abc.net.au/tv/canwehelp/txt/s2160601.htm Moment in Time&nbsp;– Episode 1] Australian Broadcasting Corporation, February 15, 2008. Retrieved January 17, 2017.</ref> His flight occurred while the U.S. and the Soviet Union were embroiled in the [[Cold War]] and competing in the [[Space Race]]. The "best day of his life," it renewed U.S. confidence. <ref name=Atlantic>Marina Koren, [https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2016/12/john-glenn-astronaut-obituary/510068/ Remembering John Glenn] ''The Atlantic'', December 8, 2016. Retrieved January 17, 2017.</ref>
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The flight made Glenn the first American to [[orbit]] the Earth;<ref>[https://www.nasa.gov/centers/glenn/about/bios/mercury_mission.html Glenn Orbits the Earth] ''NASA'', February 16, 2012. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref> the third American in space, he was the fifth human in space.<ref name=CBS/><ref name="nmspacemuseum"/> [[Perth]], [[Western Australia]], became known worldwide as the "City of Light" when residents turned on their house, car, and streetlights as Glenn passed overhead.<ref>[http://museum.wa.gov.au/city-lights City of light – 50 years in Space] ''Western Australian Museum''. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref> The city repeated the act when Glenn rode the [[Space Shuttle]] in 1998.<ref>[https://apnews.com/article/6ec1a0667fa33dd6238e6f203596f2be Perth Turns on Lights for Glenn] ''Associated Press'', October 30, 1998. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref> His flight occurred while the U.S. and the Soviet Union were embroiled in the [[Cold War]] and competing in the [[Space Race]]. The "best day of his life," it renewed U.S. confidence. <ref name=Atlantic>Marina Koren, [https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2016/12/john-glenn-astronaut-obituary/510068/ Remembering John Glenn] ''The Atlantic'', December 8, 2016. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref>
  
As the first American in orbit Glenn became a national hero, met [[John F. Kennedy|President Kennedy]], and received a [[ticker-tape parade]] in [[New York City]] reminiscent of those honoring [[Charles Lindbergh]] and other dignitaries.<ref name=CBS/> He became "so valuable to the nation as an iconic figure," according to NASA administrator [[Charles Bolden]], that Kennedy would not "risk putting him back in space again."<ref name=Lewis>Russell Lewis, [http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/12/08/252101790/john-glenn-first-american-to-orbit-the-earth-dies-at-95 John Glenn, First American To Orbit The Earth, Dies At 95] ''All Things Considered'', NPR, December 8, 2016. Retrieved January 17, 2017.</ref> On February 23, 1962, President Kennedy gave him the [[NASA Distinguished Service Medal]].<ref name=CBS/>
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As the first American in orbit Glenn became a national hero, met [[John F. Kennedy|President Kennedy]], and received a [[ticker-tape parade]] in [[New York City]] reminiscent of those honoring [[Charles Lindbergh]] and other dignitaries.<ref name=CBS/> He became "so valuable to the nation as an iconic figure," according to NASA administrator [[Charles Bolden]], that Kennedy would not "risk putting him back in space again."<ref name=Lewis>Russell Lewis, [https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/12/08/252101790/john-glenn-first-american-to-orbit-the-earth-dies-at-95 John Glenn, First American To Orbit The Earth, Dies At 95] ''All Things Considered'', NPR, December 8, 2016. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref> On February 23, 1962, President Kennedy gave him the [[NASA Distinguished Service Medal]].<ref name=CBS/>
  
 
===Resignation===
 
===Resignation===
Since Glenn was 42 years old, he was unlikely to be chosen for a lunar landing.<ref name=Tara/> He resigned from NASA on January 16, 1964, and announced his [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic Party]] candidacy for the U.S. Senate from his home state of Ohio the following day. On February 26 Glenn received a concussion from hitting his head against a bathtub,<ref name=jgpadrldk>[https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=6eorAAAAIBAJ&sjid=b2cFAAAAIBAJ&pg=3738%2C4375580 John Glenn's plans all derailed today] ''Kentucky New Era'', February 22, 1964. Retrieved January 17, 2017.</ref> and he withdrew from the race on March 30. He went on convalescent leave from the Marine Corps until he fully recovered, which was required for his retirement. Glenn retired as a [[Colonel (United States)|colonel]] on January 1, 1965, becoming an executive with [[Royal Crown Cola]].<ref name=CBS/>
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Since Glenn was 42 years old, he was unlikely to be chosen for a lunar landing.<ref name=Tara/> He resigned from NASA on January 16, 1964, and announced his [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic Party]] candidacy for the U.S. Senate from his home state of Ohio the following day. On February 26 Glenn received a concussion from hitting his head against a bathtub,<ref>[https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=6eorAAAAIBAJ&sjid=b2cFAAAAIBAJ&pg=3738%2C4375580 John Glenn's plans all derailed today] ''Kentucky New Era'', February 22, 1964. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref> and he withdrew from the race on March 30. He went on convalescent leave from the Marine Corps until he fully recovered, which was required for his retirement. Glenn retired as a [[Colonel (United States)|colonel]] on January 1, 1965, becoming an executive with [[Royal Crown Cola]].<ref name=CBS/>
  
 
==Political career==
 
==Political career==
{{Anchor|Life in politics}}
 
  
 
===U.S. Senate===
 
===U.S. Senate===
During Glenn's training, [[NASA]] psychologists determined that he was the astronaut best suited for public life.<ref>John Catchpole, ''Project Mercury: NASA's First Manned Space Programme'' (Springer, 2001, ISBN 978-1852334062).</ref> [[Attorney General of the United States|Attorney General]] [[Robert F. Kennedy]] suggested to Glenn and his wife in December 1962 that he run for the [[United States Senate|U.S. Senate]] from [[Ohio]] in 1964, challenging aging incumbent [[Stephen M. Young]] (1889–1984) in the Democratic primary election. In early 1964, Glenn announced his resignation from the space program to run against Young. He withdrew from the race several weeks after his hospitalization for a [[concussion]] sustained in a fall against a bathtub in late February; an inner-ear injury from the accident left him unable to campaign.<ref name=jgpadrldk/> Glenn remained close to the [[Kennedy family]]; he was with Robert Kennedy in [[Los Angeles]] when he was [[Assassination of Robert F. Kennedy|assassinated in 1968]], and was a pallbearer at Kennedy's funeral in [[New York City]].<ref name=Kupperberg/>
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During Glenn's training, [[NASA]] psychologists had determined that he was the astronaut best suited for public life.<ref>John Catchpole, ''Project Mercury: NASA's First Manned Space Programme'' (Springer, 2001, ISBN 978-1852334062).</ref> [[Attorney General of the United States|Attorney General]] [[Robert F. Kennedy]] suggested to Glenn and his wife in December 1962 that he run for the [[United States Senate|U.S. Senate]] from [[Ohio]] in 1964, challenging aging incumbent [[Stephen M. Young]] (1889–1984) in the Democratic primary election. Glenn remained close to the [[Kennedy family]]; he was with Robert Kennedy in [[Los Angeles]] when he was [[Assassination of Robert F. Kennedy|assassinated in 1968]], and was a pallbearer at Kennedy's funeral in [[New York City]].<ref name=Kupperberg/>
  
 
In 1970, Young did not seek reelection and the seat was open. Glenn was defeated in the Democratic primary by businessman [[Howard Metzenbaum]] (who received 51 percent of the vote to Glenn's 49 percent), but Metzenbaum lost the general election to [[Robert Taft Jr.]] In 1974, Glenn declined Ohio governor [[John J. Gilligan]] and the state Democratic party's request that he run for [[Lieutenant Governor of Ohio|lieutenant governor]] and challenged Metzenbaum again for the other [[List of United States Senators from Ohio|Ohio Senate seat]] (vacated by Republican [[William B. Saxbe]], who became [[United States Attorney General|U.S. Attorney General]] in early 1974). Metzenbaum was the short-term incumbent, appointed by Gilligan in January.  
 
In 1970, Young did not seek reelection and the seat was open. Glenn was defeated in the Democratic primary by businessman [[Howard Metzenbaum]] (who received 51 percent of the vote to Glenn's 49 percent), but Metzenbaum lost the general election to [[Robert Taft Jr.]] In 1974, Glenn declined Ohio governor [[John J. Gilligan]] and the state Democratic party's request that he run for [[Lieutenant Governor of Ohio|lieutenant governor]] and challenged Metzenbaum again for the other [[List of United States Senators from Ohio|Ohio Senate seat]] (vacated by Republican [[William B. Saxbe]], who became [[United States Attorney General|U.S. Attorney General]] in early 1974). Metzenbaum was the short-term incumbent, appointed by Gilligan in January.  
  
In the primary, Metzenbaum contrasted his strong business background with Glenn's military and astronaut credentials and said that his opponent had "never held a payroll." Glenn's reply became known as the "[[American Gold Star Mothers|Gold Star Mothers]]" speech. He told Metzenbaum to go to a veterans' hospital and "look those men with mangled bodies in the eyes and tell them they didn't hold a job. You go with me to any Gold Star mother and you look her in the eye and tell her that her son did not hold a job." According to many observers, Glenn's "Gold Star Mothers" speech won him the primary.<ref name="Koli">Monika Koli, ''20 Greatest Astronauts of the World'' (Prabhat Prakashan, 2017).</ref><ref>Eugene Kennedy , [http://www.nytimes.com/1981/10/11/magazine/john-glenn-s-presidential-countdown.html John Glenn's Presidential Countdown] ''The New York Times'', October 11, 1981. Retrieved January 17, 2017.</ref> He defeated Metzenbaum 54 to 46 percent before defeating [[Ralph Perk]] (the Republican [[List of mayors of Cleveland|mayor of Cleveland]]) in the general election, beginning a Senate career which would continue until 1999. Glenn was reelected in 1980, defeating Republican challenger [[United States Senate elections, 1980|Jim Betts]] by over 40 percent. Metzenbaum ran again in 1976 against the incumbent, Taft, winning a close race on [[Jimmy Carter]]'s [[Coattail effect|coattails]].
+
In the primary, Metzenbaum contrasted his strong business background with Glenn's military and astronaut credentials and said that his opponent had "never held a payroll." Glenn's reply became known as the "[[American Gold Star Mothers|Gold Star Mothers]]" speech. He told Metzenbaum to go to a veterans' hospital and "look those men with mangled bodies in the eyes and tell them they didn't hold a job. You go with me to any Gold Star mother and you look her in the eye and tell her that her son did not hold a job." According to many observers, Glenn's "Gold Star Mothers" speech won him the primary.<ref>Monika Koli, ''20 Greatest Astronauts of the World'' (Prabhat Prakashan, 2017).</ref> He defeated Metzenbaum 54 to 46 percent before defeating [[Ralph Perk]] (the Republican [[List of mayors of Cleveland|mayor of Cleveland]]) in the general election, beginning a Senate career which would continue until 1999.
 
 
During the late 1970s and early 1980s, the relationship between Glenn and Metzenbaum was strained. There was a thaw in 1983 (when Metzenbaum endorsed Glenn for president) and in 1988 when Metzenbaum was opposed for reelection by [[List of mayors of Cleveland|Cleveland mayor]] [[George Voinovich]], who accused him of being soft on [[child pornography]]. Voinovich's charges were criticized by many, including Glenn (who recorded a statement for television rebutting the mayor's charges); Metzenbaum won, 57 to 41 percent. [[United States Senate election in Ohio, 1986|Glenn defeated]] [[United States House of Representatives|Representative]] [[Tom Kindness]] in 1986, and announced his retirement from the Senate at the end of his term in 1997.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20030715193147/http://www.muskingum.edu/~publicr/distmuskies/glenn.html John Glenn] Muskingum University. Retrieved January 17, 2017.</ref>
 
  
 
===Savings and loan scandal===
 
===Savings and loan scandal===
Glenn was one of the [[Keating Five]]: U.S.&nbsp;senators who were caught up in the [[savings and loan crisis]] after he accepted a [[U.S. dollar|$]]200,000 campaign contribution from [[Lincoln Savings and Loan Association]] head [[Charles Keating]]. Glenn and Republican senator [[John McCain]] were the only senators who were exonerated, although the Senate commission found that Glenn had exercised "poor judgment". The association of his name with the scandal made Republicans hopeful that he could be defeated in the 1992 campaign, but Glenn defeated [[Lieutenant Governor of Ohio|lieutenant governor]] [[Mike DeWine]] to retain his seat.<ref name="whatonearth">Clifford Krauss, [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E0CE7D81E3EF936A25753C1A964958260 In Big Re-election Fight, Glenn Tests Hero Image] ''The New York Times'', October 15, 1992. Retrieved January 18, 2017.</ref>
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Glenn was one of the [[Keating Five]]: U.S.&nbsp;senators who were caught up in the [[savings and loan crisis]] after he accepted a [[U.S. dollar|$]]200,000 campaign contribution from [[Lincoln Savings and Loan Association]] head [[Charles Keating]]. Glenn and Republican senator [[John McCain]] were the only senators who were exonerated, although the Senate commission found that Glenn had exercised "poor judgment." The association of his name with the scandal made Republicans hopeful that he could be defeated in the 1992 campaign, but Glenn defeated [[Lieutenant Governor of Ohio|lieutenant governor]] [[Mike DeWine]] to retain his seat.<ref>Clifford Krauss, [https://www.nytimes.com/1992/10/15/us/in-big-re-election-fight-glenn-tests-hero-image.html In Big Re-election Fight, Glenn Tests Hero Image] ''The New York Times'', October 15, 1992. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref>
  
 
===Presidential politics===
 
===Presidential politics===
In 1976, Glenn was a candidate for the Democratic vice-presidential nomination. However, his keynote address at the Democratic National Convention failed to impress the delegates and the nomination went to veteran politician [[Walter Mondale]].<ref>Eugene Kennedy, [http://www.nytimes.com/1981/10/11/magazine/john-glenn-s-presidential-countdown.html John Glenn's Presidential Countdown] ''The New York Times'', October 11, 1981. Retrieved January 18, 2017.</ref> Glenn also ran for the 1984 Democratic presidential nomination.<ref name=Raines>Howell Raines, [http://www.nytimes.com/1983/11/13/magazine/john-glenn-the-hero-as-candidate.html?pagewanted=all John Glenn: The Hero as Candidate] ''The New York Times'', November 13, 1983. Retrieved January 18, 2017.</ref>
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In 1976, Glenn was a candidate for the Democratic vice-presidential nomination. However, his keynote address at the Democratic National Convention failed to impress the delegates and the nomination went to veteran politician [[Walter Mondale]].<ref>Eugene Kennedy, [https://www.nytimes.com/1981/10/11/magazine/john-glenn-s-presidential-countdown.html John Glenn's Presidential Countdown] ''The New York Times'', October 11, 1981. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref> Glenn also ran for the 1984 Democratic presidential nomination.<ref name=Raines>Howell Raines, [https://www.nytimes.com/1983/11/13/magazine/john-glenn-the-hero-as-candidate.html?pagewanted=all John Glenn: The Hero as Candidate] ''The New York Times'', November 13, 1983. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref>
  
He and his staff were concerned about the 1983 release of ''[[The Right Stuff (film)|The Right Stuff]]'', a film about the Mercury Seven based on the best-selling [[Tom Wolfe]] [[The Right Stuff (book)|book of the same name]]. Wolfe had called Glenn a "zealous moralizer," and he did not attend the film's Washington premiere on October 16, 1983. Reviewers saw [[Ed Harris]]' portrayal of Glenn as heroic, however, and his staff began to publicize the film to the press. Aide Greg Schneiders suggested an unusual strategy, similar to Glenn's personal campaign and voting style, where he would avoid appealing to [[special interest group]]s and instead seek support from ordinary Democratic primary voters: the "constituency of the whole."<ref name=Raines/> Mondale defeated Glenn for the nomination, however, and he carried $3&nbsp;million in campaign debt for over 20&nbsp;years before receiving a reprieve from the [[Federal Election Commission]].<ref>Michael Luo, [http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/10/us/politics/10clinton.html For Clinton, Millions in Debt and Few Options] ''The New York Times'', June 10, 2008. Retrieved January 18, 2017.</ref> He was considered as a vice-presidential candidate in 1984, 1988, and 1992.<ref name=Lewis/>
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He and his staff were concerned about the 1983 release of ''[[The Right Stuff (film)|The Right Stuff]]'', a film about the Mercury Seven based on the best-selling [[Tom Wolfe]] [[The Right Stuff (book)|book of the same name]]. Wolfe had called Glenn a "zealous moralizer," and he did not attend the film's Washington premiere on October 16, 1983. Reviewers saw [[Ed Harris]]' portrayal of Glenn as heroic, however, and his staff began to publicize the film to the press. Aide Greg Schneiders suggested an unusual strategy, similar to Glenn's personal campaign and voting style, where he would avoid appealing to [[special interest group]]s and instead seek support from ordinary Democratic primary voters: the "constituency of the whole."<ref name=Raines/> Mondale defeated Glenn for the nomination, however, and he carried $3&nbsp;million in campaign debt for over 20&nbsp;years before receiving a reprieve from the [[Federal Election Commission]].<ref>Michael Luo, [https://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/10/us/politics/10clinton.html For Clinton, Millions in Debt and Few Options] ''The New York Times'', June 10, 2008. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref> He was considered as a vice-presidential candidate in 1984, 1988, and 1992.<ref name=Lewis/>
  
 
===Issues===
 
===Issues===
As a senator, Glenn was chief author of the [[Nuclear Non-Proliferation Act of 1978]],<ref>Rajiv Nayan (ed.) ''The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and India'' (Routledge, 2013, ISBN 978-0415851282).</ref> chaired the [[United States Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs|Committee on Governmental Affairs]] from 1987 to 1995 and sat on the [[United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations|Foreign Relations]] and [[United States Senate Committee on Armed Services|Armed Services]] committees and the [[U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging|Special Committee on Aging]].<ref>Chris Hale, [http://www.rollcall.com/news/politics/former-senator-astronaut-john-glenn-dies-95 Former Senator and Astronaut John Glenn Dies at 95] ''Roll Call'', December 8, 2016. Retrieved January 18, 2017.</ref>
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As a senator, Glenn was chief author of the [[Nuclear Non-Proliferation Act of 1978]],<ref>Rajiv Nayan (ed.), ''The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and India'' (Routledge, 2013, ISBN 978-0415851282).</ref> chaired the [[United States Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs|Committee on Governmental Affairs]] from 1987 to 1995 and sat on the [[United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations|Foreign Relations]] and [[United States Senate Committee on Armed Services|Armed Services]] committees and the [[U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging|Special Committee on Aging]].<ref>Chris Hale, [https://www.rollcall.com/2016/12/08/former-senator-and-astronaut-john-glenn-dies-at-95/ Former Senator and Astronaut John Glenn Dies at 95] ''Roll Call'', December 8, 2016. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref>
  
When the Republican Party regained control of the Senate, Glenn was the ranking minority member on the [[United States Senate Homeland Security Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations|Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations]] (chaired by [[Maine]] senator [[Susan Collins]]) which investigated illegal foreign [[1996 United States campaign finance controversy|donations by China]] to U.S.&nbsp;political campaigns for the 1996 election.<ref>[https://www.hsgac.senate.gov/subcommittees/investigations/media/permanent-subcommittee-on-investigations-historical-background Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations Historical Background] US Senate Committee on Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs, December 1, 2000. Retrieved January 18, 2017.</ref>
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When the Republican Party regained control of the Senate, Glenn was the ranking minority member on the [[United States Senate Homeland Security Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations|Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations]] (chaired by [[Maine]] senator [[Susan Collins]]) which investigated illegal foreign [[1996 United States campaign finance controversy|donations by China]] to U.S.&nbsp;political campaigns for the 1996 election.<ref>[https://www.hsgac.senate.gov/subcommittees/investigations/media/permanent-subcommittee-on-investigations-historical-background Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations Historical Background] ''US Senate Committee on Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs'', December 1, 2000. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref>
  
 
==Return to space==
 
==Return to space==
On January 16, 1998, NASA administrator Dan Goldin announced that Glenn would be part of the [[STS-95]] crew;<ref> William Harwood, [http://www.cbsnews.com/network/news/space/STS-95_Archive.txt John Glenn set for historic return to space (01/16/98)] ''Shuttle Discovery: John Glenn's Return to Space'', CBS News. Retrieved January 17, 2017.</ref> this made him, at age 77, the oldest person to fly in space. NASA and the National Institute of Aging (NIA) planned to use Glenn as a test subject for research, with [[biometrics]] taken before, during and after his flight. Some experiments (in [[circadian rhythm]]s, for example) compared him with the younger crew members. In addition to these tests, he was in charge of the flight's photography and videography. Glenn returned to space on the [[Space Shuttle]] on October 29, 1998, as a [[Payload Specialist]] on [[Space Shuttle Discovery|''Discovery'']].<ref>Brian Dunbar, [https://www.nasa.gov/content/profile-of-john-glenn Profile of John Glenn] NASA, December 12, 2016. Retrieved January 17, 2017.</ref>
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On January 16, 1998, NASA administrator Dan Goldin announced that Glenn would be part of the [[STS-95]] crew;<ref> William Harwood, [https://www.cbsnews.com/network/news/space/STS-95_Archive.txt John Glenn set for historic return to space (01/16/98)] ''Shuttle Discovery: John Glenn's Return to Space'', CBS News. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref> this made him, at age 77, the oldest person to fly in space. NASA and the National Institute of Aging (NIA) planned to use Glenn as a test subject for research, with [[biometrics]] taken before, during and after his flight. Some experiments (in [[circadian rhythm]]s, for example) compared him with the younger crew members. In addition to these tests, he was in charge of the flight's photography and videography. Glenn returned to space on the [[Space Shuttle]] on October 29, 1998, as a [[Payload Specialist]] on ''[[Space Shuttle Discovery|Discovery]]''.<ref name="NASA Bio"/>
 
 
Glenn wrote in his memoir that he had no idea that NASA was willing to send him back into space when the agency made its announcement.<ref>John H. Glenn and Nick Taylor, ''John Glenn: A Memoir'' (New York: Bantam Books, 2000, ISBN 978-0553581577).</ref> His participation in the nine-day mission was criticized by some members of the space community as a favor granted by president [[Bill Clinton]]; John Pike, director of the [[Federation of American Scientists]]' space-policy project, said: "If he was a normal person, he would acknowledge he's a great American hero and that he should get to fly on the shuttle for free&nbsp;... He's too modest for that, and so he's got to have this medical research reason. It's got nothing to do with medicine."<ref name=CBS>[http://www.cbsnews.com/news/john-glenn-stirs-controversy John Glenn Stirs Controversy] ''CBS'', October 8, 1998. Retrieved January 13, 2017.</ref><ref>Chuck McCutcheon, [http://www.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/1998/04/28/cq/glenn.html Critics: Glenn Flight A Boost For NASA, Not Science] ''CNN'', April 25, 1998. Retrieved January 18, 2017.</ref>
 
 
 
In a 2012 interview, Glenn said that the purpose of his flight was "to make measurements and do research on me at the age of 77 ... comparing the results on me in space with the younger [astronauts] and maybe get [insights] on the immune system or protein turnover or vestibular functions and other things — heart changes."<ref name=Interview> Brian Riley, [http://brianriley.us/interview_with_john_glenn.html Interview with John Glenn] August 16, 2012. Retrieved January 18, 2017.</ref>
 
 
 
After STS-95 returned safely, its crew received a [[ticker-tape parade]]; this made Glenn the tenth individual to receive multiple ticker-tape parades. On October 15, 1998, NASA Road&nbsp;1 (the main [[causeway]] to the Johnson Space Center) was renamed John Glenn Parkway for several months. In 2001, Glenn strenuously opposed sending [[Dennis Tito]], the world's first [[Space tourism|space tourist]], to the International Space Station because Tito's trip had no scientific purpose.<ref>Richard Stenger, [https://web.archive.org/web/20081006170526/http://archives.cnn.com/2001/TECH/space/05/03/space.day/index.html John Glenn: Space tourist cheapening Alpha] ''CNN'', May 3, 2001. Retrieved January 18, 2017.</ref>
 
 
 
=={{anchor|Public affairs institute}}Public-affairs institute==
 
Glenn helped found the John Glenn Institute for Public Service and Public Policy at [[Ohio State University]] in 1998 to encourage public service. On July 22, 2006, the institute merged with OSU's School of Public Policy and Management to become the John Glenn School of Public Affairs; Glenn held an [[Professors in the United States#Adjunct professor|adjunct professorship]] at the school.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://glennschool.osu.edu/about/john_glenn.html|title=JOHN H. GLENN Jr.|work=[[Ohio State University]]|location=[[Columbus, Ohio]]|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20141207161218/http://glennschool.osu.edu/about/john_glenn.html|date=December 7, 2014|accessdate=December 8, 2016|archivedate=December 7, 2014|dead-url=yes}}</ref> In February 2015, it was announced that the school would become the [[John Glenn College of Public Affairs]] in April.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/editorials/2015/02/04/1-welcome-to-john-glenn-college-of-public-affairs.html |title=Welcome to John Glenn College of Public Affairs |work= The Columbus Dispatch|publisher=Dispatch.com|date=February 4, 2015|accessdate=April 24, 2015}}</ref>
 
 
 
==Personal life==
 
[[File:Annie and John Glenn 1965.jpg|thumb|alt=Black-and-white photo of the Glenns|Annie and John Glenn in 1965]]
 
On April 6, 1943 Glenn married his high school sweetheart, [[Annie Glenn|Anna Margaret Castor]] (b. 1920). Glenn and his wife attended [[Muskingum College]] in [[New Concord, Ohio]], where he was a member of the Stag Club fraternity.<ref>{{cite news|work=[[PR Newswire]]|url=http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/1963-muskingum-grad-to-conduct-solar-experiments-aboard-oct-29-shuttle-flight-with-muskie-john-glenn-on-board-77024107.html|title=Muskingum Grad to Conduct Solar Experiments Aboard Oct. 29 Shuttle Flight with Muskie John Glenn on Board|publisher=[[Cision Inc.]]|location=[[New York City]]|date=October 16, 1998|accessdate=September 24, 2015|author=Muskingum College|authorlink=Muskingum College}}</ref> They had two children—John David (b. 1945) and Carolyn Ann (b. 1947)—and two grandchildren,{{sfn|Kupperberg|2003|p=31}} and remained married for 73 years until his death. Glenn's NASA friend, [[Charles Bolden]], was inspired by the marriage. "For anyone who's contemplating marriage, you ought to go to school on the Glenns, because they can teach us a lot about what unending love, with undying respect and admiration for each other means&nbsp;... There was never a question whether Annie was the love of his life."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cj6EkDzO1aA;t=5m30s |title=Charles Bolden discussing John Glenn's marriage|publisher= NASA|date= December 8, 2016}}</ref> His boyhood home in New Concord has been [[Building restoration|restored]] as an [[historic house museum]] and education center.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://johnglennhome.org|title=The John & Annie Glenn&nbsp;— Historic Site|publisher=Johnglennhome.org|accessdate=April 24, 2015}}</ref>
 
 
 
A [[Freemasonry|Freemason]], Glenn was a member of Concord Lodge #688 in New Concord, Ohio. He received all of his degrees in full in a "Mason at Sight" ceremony from the Grand Master of Ohio in 1978, fourteen years after petitioning his lodge. In 1998, Glenn became a 32nd-degree [[Scottish Rite]] Mason in the Valley of Cincinnati (NMJ); the following year, he received the 33rd degree of the Scottish Rite. As an adult he was honored as part of the DeMolay Legion of Honor by [[DeMolay International]], a Masonic youth organization for boys (although he did not belong to the organization as a youth).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://freemasonsfordummies.blogspot.com/2016/12/illus-brother-john-h-glenn-jr.html|title=Illus. Brother John H. Glenn, Jr.|author=Christopher Hodapp|publisher=FreemasonsForDummies.com|accessdate=December 15, 2016}}</ref>
 
  
Glenn was an ordained elder of the [[Presbyterian Church (USA)|Presbyterian Church]].<ref>{{cite book|title=John Glenn profile|last=Kupperberg|first=Paul|year=2003|publisher=The Rosen Publishing Group|location=New York|isbn=9780823944606|page=96|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=i5ebfd4c4s0C|accessdate=July 24, 2009}}</ref> Although his religious faith was kindled before he became an astronaut, it was reinforced after he traveled in space. "To look out at this kind of creation and not believe in God is to me impossible", said Glenn after his second (and final) space voyage.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/acts-of-faith/wp/2016/12/08/in-outer-space-john-glenn-saw-the-face-of-god/?utm_term=.65f9790ce45e |title=In space, John Glenn saw the face of God: 'It just strengthens my faith'|work=Washington Post|date= Dec 8, 2016}}</ref> He saw no contradiction between belief in God and the knowledge that evolution is "a fact", and believed that evolution should be taught in schools:<ref>{{cite web|title=John Glenn Says Evolution Should Be Taught In Schools|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/05/20/john-glenn-evolution_n_7343168.html|archiveurl=https://wayback.archive.org/web/20160310191231/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/05/20/john-glenn-evolution_n_7343168.html|archivedate=2016-03-10|work=[[The Huffington Post]]|publisher=[[AOL]]|location=United States|date=May 20, 2015|accessdate=May 22, 2015}}</ref> "I don't see that I'm any less religious that I can appreciate the fact that science just records that we change with evolution and time, and that's a fact. It doesn't mean it's less wondrous and it doesn't mean that there can't be some power greater than any of us that has been behind and is behind whatever is going on."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://religionnews.com/2016/12/08/as-astronaut-senator-and-presbyterian-john-glenn-saw-no-conflict-between-beliefs-in-god-and-science/ |title=Astronaut, senator and Presbyterian John Glenn saw no conflict between beliefs in God and science|publisher=Religion News Service|date= Dec 8, 2016}}</ref>
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Glenn wrote in his memoir that he had no idea that NASA was willing to send him back into space when the agency made its announcement.<ref>John H. Glenn and Nick Taylor, ''John Glenn: A Memoir'' (New York: Bantam Books, 2000, ISBN 978-0553581577).</ref> His participation in the nine-day mission was criticized by some members of the space community as a favor granted by president [[Bill Clinton]].
  
He was an original owner of a [[Holiday Inn]] franchise near [[Orlando, Florida|Orlando]], Florida, which is today the [[Seralago Hotel & Suites Main Gate East]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.seralagohotel.com/hotel/seralago-history.php|title=The History of our Kissimmee Family Hotel|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140222222151/http://www.seralagohotel.com/hotel/seralago-history.php|archivedate=February 22, 2014|accessdate=December 8, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|url=https://www.amazon.com/Gift-Life-Henri-Landwirth/dp/B005V5JKFK|last=Landwirth|first=Henri|authorlink=Henri Landwirth|title=Gift of Life|asin=B005V5JKFK|year=1996|publisher={{noitalic|Private Printing Publishing}}|location=United States}}</ref> Glenn's business partner was [[Henri Landwirth]], a Holocaust survivor who became his "best friend."<ref name=NYMag>Kramer, Michael. "John Glenn: The Right Stuff", ''New York Magazine'', January 31, 1983, p. 24</ref> He remembered learning about Landwirth's background: "Henri doesn't talk about it much. It was years before he spoke about it with me and then only because of an accident. We were down in Florida during the space program. Everyone was wearing short-sleeved Ban-Lon shirts{{mdash}}everyone but Henri. Then one day I saw Henri at the pool and noticed the number on his arm. I told Henri that if it were me I'd wear that number like a medal with a spotlight on it."<ref name=NYMag/>
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In a 2012 interview, Glenn said that the purpose of his flight was "to make measurements and do research on me at the age of 77 to see if we could find out by comparing the results on me in space with the younger people and maybe get answers to some of those things on the immune system or protein turnover or vestibular functions and other things — heart changes."<ref name=Interview> Adrian Apollo, Interview with John Glenn August 16, 2012.</ref>  
  
==={{anchor|Public appearances and ceremonies}}Public appearances===
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After STS-95 returned safely, its crew received a [[ticker-tape parade]]; this made Glenn the tenth individual to receive multiple ticker-tape parades. On October 15, 1998, NASA Road&nbsp;1 (the main [[causeway]] to the Johnson Space Center) was renamed John Glenn Parkway for several months. In 2001, Glenn strenuously opposed sending [[Dennis Tito]], the world's first [[Space tourism|space tourist]], to the International Space Station because Tito's trip had no scientific purpose.<ref>Richard Stenger, [http://archives.cnn.com/2001/TECH/space/05/03/space.day/index.html John Glenn: Space tourist cheapening Alpha] ''CNN'', May 3, 2001. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref>
[[File:Titov jfk glenn.jpg|thumb|left|alt=See caption|Glenn with President Kennedy and Soviet cosmonaut [[Gherman Titov]] at the [[White House]], 1962]]
 
Glenn was an honorary member of the [[International Academy of Astronautics]] and a member of the [[Society of Experimental Test Pilots]], Marine Corps Aviation Association, [[Order of Daedalians]], National Space Club Board of Trustees, National Space Society Board of Governors, International Association of Holiday Inns, [[Ohio Democratic Party]], State Democratic Executive Committee, Franklin County (Ohio) Democratic Party and the 10th District (Ohio) Democratic Action Club.<ref name=Tara/> In 2001 he guest-starred as  himself on the American television sitcom, ''[[Frasier]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.osu.edu/news/releases/01-03-05_Senator_Glenn_to_appear_on_%27Frasier%27.html|title=John Glenn appears on Emmy-award winning 'Frasier'|work=[[Ohio State University]]|location=[[Columbus, Ohio]]|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20130514203355/http://www.osu.edu/news/releases/01-03-05_Senator_Glenn_to_appear_on_%27Frasier%27.html|date=March 5, 2001|accessdate=December 8, 2016|archivedate=May 14, 2013}}</ref>
 
  
On September 5, 2009, John and Annie Glenn dotted the "i" in Ohio State University's [[Script Ohio#Script Ohio|Script Ohio]] [[The Ohio State University Marching Band|marching band]] performance during the [[Ohio State Buckeyes football|Ohio State]]–[[Navy Midshipmen football|Navy]] football-game halftime show. Other non-band members to receive the honor include [[Bob Hope]], [[Woody Hayes]], [[Jack Nicklaus]] and [[Earle Bruce]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Traditions|url=https://tbdbitl.osu.edu/marching-band/traditions|accessdate=December 8, 2016}}</ref> On February 20, 2012, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the ''Friendship 7'' flight, Glenn had an unexpected opportunity to speak with the [[Expedition 30|orbiting crew]] of the [[International Space Station]] when he was onstage with [[NASA Administrator]] [[Charlie Bolden]] at Ohio State University.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/46455911/ns/technology_and_science-space/ |title=Armstrong honors Glenn 50 years after his orbit&nbsp;– NASA also surprised Glenn with space station chat|first=Kantele|last=Franko|date=February 20, 2012|work=[[MSNBC]]|publisher=[[NBCUniversal]] ([[Comcast]])|location=United States|accessdate=February 21, 2012}}</ref>
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==Public-affairs institute==
 +
Glenn helped found the John Glenn Institute for Public Service and Public Policy at [[Ohio State University]] in 1998 to encourage public service. On July 22, 2006, the institute merged with OSU's School of Public Policy and Management to become the John Glenn School of Public Affairs; Glenn held an [[Professors in the United States#Adjunct professor|adjunct professorship]] at the school, later renamed the [[John Glenn College of Public Affairs]].<ref>[http://glenn.osu.edu/about/john-glenn/ John Glenn] ''John Glenn College of Public Affairs'' Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref>
  
[[File:Senator John Glenn at Space Shuttle Discovery Transfer Ceremony.jpg|thumb|alt=A bespectacled Glenn speaking at an outdoor podium|Glenn at the ceremony transferring the space shuttle ''Discovery'' to the Smithsonian Institution]]
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===Public appearances===
On April 19, 2012, Glenn participated in the ceremonial transfer of the retired [[Space Shuttle Discovery|Space Shuttle ''Discovery'']] from NASA to the [[Smithsonian Institution]] for permanent display at the [[Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center]]. He criticized the "unfortunate" decision to end the [[Space Shuttle program]], saying that grounding the shuttles delayed research.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.philly.com/philly/news/nation_world/148203975.html|title=Shuttle Discovery lands at Smithsonian|last=Zongker|first=Brett|date=April 20, 2012|publisher=[[Interstate General Media]]|location=[[Philadelphia]]|archive-url=http://archive.is/UTI9|archive-date=September 7, 2012|work=[[Philadelphia Daily News]]|accessdate=April 21, 2012}}</ref>
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[[File:Titov jfk glenn.jpg|thumb|left|250px|Glenn with President Kennedy and Soviet cosmonaut [[Gherman Titov]] at the [[White House]], 1962]]
 +
Glenn was an honorary member of the [[International Academy of Astronautics]] and a member of the [[Society of Experimental Test Pilots]], Marine Corps Aviation Association, [[Order of Daedalians]], National Space Club Board of Trustees, National Space Society Board of Governors, International Association of Holiday Inns, [[Ohio Democratic Party]], State Democratic Executive Committee, Franklin County (Ohio) Democratic Party and the 10th District (Ohio) Democratic Action Club.<ref name=Tara/> In 2001 he guest-starred as  himself on the American television sitcom, ''[[Frasier]]''.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20130514203355/http://www.osu.edu/news/releases/01-03-05_Senator_Glenn_to_appear_on_%27Frasier%27.html John Glenn appears on Emmy-award winning 'Frasier'] ''Ohio State News'', March 5, 2001. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref>
  
In June 2016, the Port Columbus, Ohio airport was renamed the [[John Glenn Columbus International Airport]]. The Glenns attended the ceremony, and he spoke about how visiting the airport as a child kindled his interest in flying.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/business/2016/06/28/0628-john-glenn-honored-at-airport-renaming-ceremony.html|title=John Glenn honored as Columbus airport is renamed for him|work=[[The Columbus Dispatch]]|location=[[Columbus, Ohio]]|publisher=[[GateHouse Media|New Media Investment Group]]}}</ref>
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On September 5, 2009, John and Annie Glenn dotted the "i" in Ohio State University's [[Script Ohio#Script Ohio|Script Ohio]] [[The Ohio State University Marching Band|marching band]] performance during the [[Ohio State Buckeyes football|Ohio State]]–[[Navy Midshipmen football|Navy]] football-game halftime show. Other non-band members to receive the honor include [[Bob Hope]], [[Woody Hayes]], [[Jack Nicklaus]] and [[Earle Bruce]].<ref>[https://tbdbitl.osu.edu/marching-band/traditions Traditions] ''The Ohio State University Marching and Athletic Bands''. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref> On February 20, 2012, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the ''Friendship 7'' flight, Glenn had an unexpected opportunity to speak with the [[Expedition 30|orbiting crew]] of the [[International Space Station]] when he was onstage with [[NASA Administrator]] [[Charlie Bolden]] at Ohio State University.<ref>Kantele Franko, [https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna46455911 Armstrong honors Glenn 50 years after his orbit] ''Associated Press'', February 20, 2012. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref>
  
==Illness and death==
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[[File:Senator John Glenn at Space Shuttle Discovery Transfer Ceremony.jpg|thumb|250px|Glenn at the ceremony transferring the space shuttle ''Discovery'' to the Smithsonian Institution]]
In June 2014, Glenn underwent successful [[heart valve replacement]] surgery at the [[Cleveland Clinic]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/2014/06/12/us/john-glenn-sucessful-heart-surgery/index.html|title=John Glenn—astronaut, ex-senator—gets successful heart surgery |work=[[CNN]]|publisher=[[Turner Broadcasting System]] ([[Time Warner]])|location=[[Atlanta]]|first1=John Newsome|first2=Joshua|last1=Berlinger|last2=Berlinger}}</ref> In early December 2016, he was hospitalized at [[the James Cancer Hospital]] of [[Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center]] in Columbus.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/2016/12/07/health/john-glenn-hospitalized/index.html|title=Former senator, astronaut John Glenn hospitalized|first=Ashley|last= Strickland|work=CNN|date=December 7, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ssf/2016/12/john_glenn_in_declining_health.html|title=John Glenn, in declining health, is hospitalized|work=Cleveland Plain Dealer|date=December 7, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/politics/2016/12/07/john-glenn-former-senator-astronaut-hospitalized-ohio/95104816|title=Former senator, astronaut John Glenn in OSU hospital|work=Cincinnati Inquirer|date=December 7, 2016}}</ref> According to a family source, Glenn had been in declining health and his condition was grave; his wife, their children and grandchildren were at the hospital.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2016/12/08/1208-john-glenn-hospitalized.html|title=Former astronaut John Glenn hospitalized in Columbus|work=[[Columbus Dispatch]]|date=December 8, 2016}}</ref>
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On April 19, 2012, Glenn participated in the ceremonial transfer of the retired ''[[Space Shuttle Discovery|Space Shuttle Discovery]]'' from NASA to the [[Smithsonian Institution]] for permanent display at the [[Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center]]. He criticized the "unfortunate" decision to end the [[Space Shuttle program]], saying that grounding the shuttles delayed research.<ref name=Interview/>
  
Glenn died on December 8, 2016, at the OSU Wexner Medical Center;<ref name="dispatchobit">{{Cite news|url=http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2016/12/john-glenn/john-glenn.html|title=John Glenn, American hero, aviation icon and former U.S. senator, dies at 95|work=[[The Columbus Dispatch]]|location=[[Columbus, Ohio]]|publisher=[[GateHouse Media|New Media Investment Group]]|access-date=December 8, 2016}}</ref><ref name="ABC News Death">{{cite web|url=http://abcnews.go.com/US/john-glenn-american-orbit-earth-dies/story?id=44045957|title=John Glenn, First American to Orbit the Earth, Dies|work=[[ABC News]]|publisher=[[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]]|location=United States|date=December 8, 2016|accessdate=December 8, 2016}}</ref> no cause of death was disclosed. He would be interred at [[Arlington National Cemetery]] after lying in state at the [[Ohio Statehouse]] and a memorial service at Mershon Auditorium at Ohio State University.<ref name="dispatchobit"/>
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In June 2016, the Port Columbus, Ohio airport was renamed the [[John Glenn Columbus International Airport]]. The Glenns attended the ceremony, and he spoke about how visiting the airport as a child kindled his interest in flying.<ref> Julie Carr Smyth, [https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/flights/todayinthesky/2016/06/30/john-glenn-hopes-airport-being-named-him-inspires-kids/86547632/ Ohio's Columbus airport renamed for astronaut John Glenn] ''USA Today'', June 30, 2016. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref>
  
 
==Legacy==
 
==Legacy==
President [[Barack Obama]] said that Glenn, "the first American to orbit the Earth, reminded us that with courage and a spirit of discovery there's no limit to the heights we can reach together".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2016/12/08/statement-president-passing-john-glenn |title=Statement by the President on the Passing of John Glenn|publisher= The White House|date= December 8, 2016}}</ref> Tributes were also paid by former Secretary of State [[Hillary Clinton]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.salamancapress.com/hillary-clinton-marks-passing-of-john-glenn/youtube_1f535714-5379-5173-adb3-6429fb5b4c3d.html |title=Hillary Clinton Marks Passing of John Glenn}}</ref> and president-elect [[Donald Trump]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.fox25boston.com/news/trending-now/presidentelect-donald-trump-honors-the-late-john-glenn/474420280 |title=President-elect Donald Trump honors the late John Glenn|publisher=Fox25|date= December 8, 2016}}</ref>
+
In his official statement President [[Barack Obama]] said that Glenn, "the first American to orbit the Earth, reminded us that with courage and a spirit of discovery there's no limit to the heights we can reach together."<ref>[https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/2016/12/08/statement-president-passing-john-glenn Statement by the President on the Passing of John Glenn] ''The White House'', December 8, 2016. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref> Tributes were also paid by former Secretary of State [[Hillary Clinton]] and president-elect [[Donald Trump]]. Former and current astronauts added tributes; so did NASA Administrator and former shuttle astronaut [[Charles Bolden]], who wrote: "John Glenn's legacy is one of risk and accomplishment, of history created and duty to country carried out under great pressure with the whole world watching."<ref> Robert Z. Pearlman, [https://www.space.com/34972-godspeed-john-glenn-tributes.html John Glenn Memorialized with 'Godspeed' Radio Hail Turned Hashtag] ''Space.com'', December 9, 2016. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref>  
  
"Godspeed" which hailed Glenn's launch into space, became part of his social-media [[hashtag]]:  #Godspeedjohnglenn. Former and current astronauts added tributes; so did NASA Administrator  and former shuttle astronaut [[Charles Bolden]], who wrote: "John Glenn's legacy is one of risk and accomplishment, of history created and duty to country carried out under great pressure with the whole world watching."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.space.com/34972-godspeed-john-glenn-tributes.html |title=John Glenn Memorialized with 'Godspeed' Radio Hail Turned Hashtag|publisher=Space.com|date=December 9, 2016}}</ref> President Obama ordered flags to be flown at [[half-mast]] until Glenn's burial.<ref>{{cite web|last=Boyle|first=Alan|url=http://www.geekwire.com/2016/us-flags-half-staff-john-glenn/|title=Obama orders U.S. flags to fly at half-staff to mark space hero John Glenn's passing|publisher=Geekwire.com|date=December 9, 2016}}</ref>
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President Obama ordered flags to be flown at [[half-mast]] until Glenn's burial.<ref>Alan Boyle, [https://www.geekwire.com/2016/us-flags-half-staff-john-glenn/ Obama orders U.S. flags to fly at half-staff to mark space hero John Glenn's passing] ''Geekwire.com'', December 9, 2016. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref>
  
 
==Awards and honors==
 
==Awards and honors==
[[File:John Glenn receiving Presidential Medal of Freedom.jpg|thumb|alt=Barack Obama putting on Glenn's Medal of Freedom from behind|Receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Barack Obama in 2010]]
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[[File:John Glenn receiving Presidential Medal of Freedom.jpg|thumb|225px|Receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Barack Obama in 2010]]
 
 
 
In 1961 Glenn received an [[Honorary degree|honorary]] [[LL.D]] from [[Muskingum University]], the college he attended before joining the military in World War&nbsp;II.<ref name="NewLondonDay"/> He received honorary doctorates from [[Nihon University]] in [[Tokyo]], [[Wagner College]] in [[Staten Island|Staten Island, New York]] and [[Southern New Hampshire University|New Hampshire College]] in [[Manchester, New Hampshire]].
 
In 1961 Glenn received an [[Honorary degree|honorary]] [[LL.D]] from [[Muskingum University]], the college he attended before joining the military in World War&nbsp;II.<ref name="NewLondonDay"/> He received honorary doctorates from [[Nihon University]] in [[Tokyo]], [[Wagner College]] in [[Staten Island|Staten Island, New York]] and [[Southern New Hampshire University|New Hampshire College]] in [[Manchester, New Hampshire]].
  
Glenn was inducted into the [[National Aviation Hall of Fame]] in 1976<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nationalaviation.org/enshrinees|title=National Aviation Hall of fame: Our Enshrinees|publisher=[[National Aviation Hall of Fame]]|access-date=February 10, 2011}}</ref> and the [[New Mexico Museum of Space History|International Space Hall of Fame]] in 1977.<ref name="nmspacemuseum"/> In 1990, he was inducted into the [[U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://astronautscholarship.org/Astronauts/john-h-glenn-jr|title=John Glenn &#124; Astronaut Scholarship Foundation|publisher=Astronautscholarship.org|accessdate=April 24, 2015}}</ref>
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Glenn was inducted into the [[National Aviation Hall of Fame]] in 1976<ref>[http://www.nationalaviation.org/our-enshrinees/glenn-john/ Glenn, John Herschel, Jr.] ''National Aviation Hall of Fame''. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref> and the [[New Mexico Museum of Space History|International Space Hall of Fame]] in 1977.<ref name="nmspacemuseum"/> In 1990, he was inducted into the [[U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame]].<ref>[https://www.astronautscholarship.org/Astronauts/john-h-glenn-jr/ John Glenn] ''Astronaut Scholarship Foundation''. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref>
  
In 2000 Glenn received the U.S. Senator John Heinz Award for public service by an elected or appointed official, one of the annual [[Jefferson Awards for Public Service|Jefferson Awards]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.jeffersonawards.org/pastwinners/national|title=National Winners &#124; public service awards|publisher=Jefferson Awards.org|accessdate=August 30, 2013}}</ref>
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In 2000 Glenn received the U.S. Senator John Heinz Award for public service by an elected or appointed official, one of the annual [[Jefferson Awards for Public Service|Jefferson Awards]]. Four years later, he received the [[Woodrow Wilson Awards|Woodrow Wilson Award for Public Service]] from the [[Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars]] of the Smithsonian Institution.<ref>[https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/woodrow-wilson-international-center-for-scholars-of-the-smithsonian-institution-to-honor-bernard-arnault-and-jacques-attali-in-washington-dc-118450909.html Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars of the Smithsonian Institution to Honor Bernard Arnault and Jacques Attali in Washington, D.C.] ''Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars'', Mar 22, 2011. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref> In 2009, Glenn received an honorary LL.D from [[Williams College]];<ref>[https://commencement.williams.edu/honorary-degrees/?ffp=2 Honorary Degrees] ''Williams College''. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref> the following year, he received an honorary doctorate of public service degree from [[Ohio Northern University]].<ref>Tyrel Linkhorn, [https://archive.li/hLLzY Honorary doctorate degree for John Glenn] ''The Lima News'', May 24, 2010. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref>
Four years later, he received the [[Woodrow Wilson Awards|Woodrow Wilson Award for Public Service]] from the [[Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars]] of the Smithsonian Institution.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wilsoncenter.org/sites/default/files/u52/PS-AwardeesWEB.png |title=Recipients of the Woodrow Wilson Award for Public Service|publisher= wilsoncenter.org|access-date= November 18, 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.voanews.com/a/john-glenn-first-astronaut-to-orbit-the-earth-dies-at-95/3628665.html |title=John Glenn, First US Astronaut to Orbit the Earth, Dies at 95|publisher=Voice of America|date= December 8, 2016}}</ref> In 2009, Glenn received an honorary LL.D from [[Williams College]];<ref>{{cite web|url=http://president.williams.edu/honorary-degrees|title=Honorary Degrees &#124; Office of the President|publisher=President.williams.edu|accessdate=April 24, 2015}}</ref> the following year, he received an honorary doctorate of public service degree from [[Ohio Northern University]].<ref>{{cite news|first=Tyrel|last=Linkhorn|url=https://archive.li/hLLzY|title=Honorary doctorate degree for John Glenn|date=May 24, 2010|accessdate=December 8, 2016|work=[[The Lima News]]|publisher=[[Ohio Community Media]]|location=[[Lima, Ohio]]}}</ref>
 
  
[[File:Quincy Jones, John Glenn, and Neil Armstrong during NASA's 50th anniversary gala.jpg|left|thumb|alt=Quincy Jones presenting award records to Glenn and Neil Armstrong|[[Quincy Jones]] presents platinum copies of "[[Fly Me to the Moon]]" (from ''[[It Might as Well Be Swing]]'') to Glenn and [[Apollo 11]] Commander [[Neil Armstrong]]]]
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[[File:Quincy Jones, John Glenn, and Neil Armstrong during NASA's 50th anniversary gala.jpg|left|thumb|250px|[[Quincy Jones]] presents platinum copies of "[[Fly Me to the Moon]]" (from ''[[It Might as Well Be Swing]]'') to Glenn and [[Apollo 11]] Commander [[Neil Armstrong]]]]
In 2013, [[Flying (magazine)|''Flying'']] magazine ranked Glenn 26th on its "51 Heroes of Aviation" list.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.flyingmag.com/photo-gallery/photos/51-heroes-aviation?pnid=41828|title=51 Heroes of Aviation|publisher=Flyingmag.com|accessdate=April 24, 2015}}</ref> On September 12, 2016 [[Blue Origin]] announced the [[New Glenn]], a rocket.<ref name="NYT Victor">Daniel Victor, [http://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/13/business/meet-new-glenn-the-blue-origin-rocket-that-may-someday-take-you-to-space.html Meet New Glenn, the Blue Origin Rocket That May Someday Take You to Space] ''The New York Times'', September 12, 2016. Retrieved January 13, 2017.</ref>
+
In 2013, [[Flying (magazine)|''Flying'']] magazine ranked Glenn 26th on its "51 Heroes & Heroines of Aviation" list.<ref>Isabel Goyer, [https://www.flyingmag.com/photo-gallery/photos/51-heroes-aviation/?pnid=41828 51 Heroes & Heroines of Aviation] ''Flying'', July 24, 2013. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref> On September 12, 2016 [[Blue Origin]] announced the [[New Glenn]], a rocket.<ref>Daniel Victor, [https://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/13/business/meet-new-glenn-the-blue-origin-rocket-that-may-someday-take-you-to-space.html Meet New Glenn, the Blue Origin Rocket That May Someday Take You to Space] ''The New York Times'', September 12, 2016. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref>
  
The [[Glenn Research Center]] at Lewis Field in [[Cleveland]] is named after him, and the Senator John Glenn Highway runs along a stretch of [[Interstate 480 (Ohio)|I-480]] in Ohio across from the Glenn Research Center. Colonel Glenn Highway (which passes [[Wright-Patterson Air Force Base]] and [[Wright State University]] near [[Dayton, Ohio]]), [[John Glenn High School (New Concord, Ohio)|John Glenn High School]] in his hometown of New Concord, and Col. John Glenn Elementary in [[Seven Hills, Ohio]], are also named for him. High schools in [[Westland, Michigan|Westland]] and [[Bay City, Michigan]]; [[Walkerton, Indiana]]; [[San Angelo, Texas]], and [[Norwalk, California]] bear Glenn's name.
+
The [[Glenn Research Center]] at Lewis Field in [[Cleveland]] is named after him, and the Senator John Glenn Highway runs along a stretch of [[Interstate 480 (Ohio)|I-480]] in Ohio across from the Glenn Research Center. Colonel Glenn Highway (which passes [[Wright-Patterson Air Force Base]] and [[Wright State University]] near [[Dayton, Ohio]]), [[John Glenn High School (New Concord, Ohio)|John Glenn High School]] in his hometown of New Concord, and Col. John Glenn Elementary in [[Seven Hills, Ohio]], are also named for him. High schools in [[Westland, Michigan|Westland]] and [[Bay City, Michigan]]; [[Walkerton, Indiana]]; [[San Angelo, Texas]], and [[Norwalk, California]] bear Glenn's name. His boyhood home in New Concord has been [[Building restoration|restored]] as an [[historic house museum]] and education center.<ref>[http://johnandannieglennmuseum.org/ The John & Annie Glenn Museum] Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref>
  
The [[fireboat]] [[Fireboat John H. Glenn Jr.|''John H. Glenn Jr.'']], operated by the [[District of Columbia Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department]] and protecting sections of the [[Potomac River|Potomac]] and [[Anacostia River]]s which run through Washington, D.C., was named for him. The [[USNS John Glenn (T-MLP-2)|USNS ''John Glenn'' (T-MLP-2)]], a [[Expeditionary Transfer Dock|mobile landing platform]] delivered to the [[United States Navy|U.S. Navy]] on March 12, 2014, is also named for Glenn. It was [[Ceremonial ship launching|christened]] on February 1, 2014, in [[San Diego]] at [[General Dynamics]]' [[National Steel and Shipbuilding Company]].<ref>[http://www.chieftain.com/mobile/mhome/2249273-123/ship-glenn-john-navy Navy christens USNS John Glenn] ''Associated Press'', February 1, 2014. Retrieved January 13, 2017.</ref>
+
The [[fireboat]] ''[[Fireboat John H. Glenn Jr.|John H. Glenn Jr.]]'', operated by the [[District of Columbia Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department]] and protecting sections of the [[Potomac River|Potomac]] and [[Anacostia River]]s which run through Washington, D.C., was named for him. The [[USNS John Glenn (T-MLP-2)|USNS John Glenn (T-MLP-2)]], a [[Expeditionary Transfer Dock|mobile landing platform]] delivered to the [[United States Navy|U.S. Navy]] on March 12, 2014, is also named for Glenn. It was [[Ceremonial ship launching|christened]] on February 1, 2014, in [[San Diego]] at [[General Dynamics]]' [[National Steel and Shipbuilding Company]].<ref> Robert Z. Pearlman, [https://www.space.com/24537-astronaut-john-glenn-navy-ship.html Godspeed the John Glenn: Navy Christens Ship for 1st American to Orbit Earth] ''Space.com'', February 3, 2014. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref>
  
* [[Congressional Gold Medal]]<ref name=BBC>[http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-38257445 John Glenn, first American to orbit Earth, dies aged 95] ''BBC'', December 8, 2016. Retrieved January 13, 2017.</ref>
+
* [[Congressional Gold Medal]]<ref>[https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-38257445 John Glenn, first American to orbit Earth, dies aged 95] ''BBC'', December 8, 2016. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref>
* [[National Geographic Society]]'s [[Hubbard Medal]], 1962<ref>[http://khon2.com/2016/06/18/hokuleas-nainoa-thompson-receives-nati Hokulea’s Nainoa Thompson receives National Geographic award] ''KHON TV'', June 18, 2016. Retrieved January 13, 2017.</ref>
+
* [[National Geographic Society]]'s [[Hubbard Medal]], 1962<ref>[https://www.khon2.com/news/hokuleas-nainoa-thompson-receives-national-geographic-award/ Hokulea’s Nainoa Thompson receives National Geographic award] ''KHON TV'', June 18, 2016. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref>
* [[John J. Montgomery Award]], 1963<ref name=Porter>Lorle Porter, ''John Glenn's New Concord'' (Arcadia Publishing, 2001, ISBN 978-0738508436).</ref>
+
* [[John J. Montgomery Award]], 1963<ref>Lorle Porter, ''John Glenn's New Concord'' (Arcadia Publishing, 2001, ISBN 978-0738508436).</ref>
*[[Thomas D. White]] National Defense Award<ref>[http://www.usafa.af.mil/AboutUs/FactSheets/Display/tabid/1530/Article/428276/the-thomas-d-white-national-defense-award.aspx The Thomas D. White National Defense Award] Retrieved January 13, 2017.</ref>
+
*[[Thomas D. White]] National Defense Award<ref>[https://kb.osu.edu/handle/1811/82471 Thomas D. White National Defense Award presented to Senator John Glenn by the United States Air Force Academy] Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref>
* Ambassador of Space Exploration Award<ref name="nasaambass">[https://www.nasa.gov/vision/space/features/glenn_ambassador_of_exploration.html NASA Honors a Legendary Astronaut] NASA, February 21, 2006. Retrieved January 13, 2017.</ref>
+
* Ambassador of Space Exploration Award<ref name="nasaambass">[https://www.nasa.gov/vision/space/features/glenn_ambassador_of_exploration.html NASA Honors a Legendary Astronaut] NASA, February 21, 2006. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref>
  
 
==Gallery==
 
==Gallery==
Line 225: Line 197:
 
File:John Glenn at the Mercury Control Center.jpg|At Mercury Control Center, Cape Canaveral|alt=A smiling Glenn behind the wheel of a convertible
 
File:John Glenn at the Mercury Control Center.jpg|At Mercury Control Center, Cape Canaveral|alt=A smiling Glenn behind the wheel of a convertible
 
File:LC-14 Glenn plaque.jpg|Plaque near [[Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Launch Complex 14|Mercury launch pad]]
 
File:LC-14 Glenn plaque.jpg|Plaque near [[Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Launch Complex 14|Mercury launch pad]]
 +
File:John Glenn Entering Friendship 7 - GPN-2000-000652.jpg|John Glenn enters Friendship 7 prior to the first American manned Earth orbital mission
 
</gallery>
 
</gallery>
  
Line 244: Line 217:
  
 
==External links==
 
==External links==
All links retrieved
+
All links retrieved August 3, 2022.
*[https://www.nasa.gov/centers/glenn/about/bios/john_glenn.html John Glenn, 1921-2016], ''NASA''
+
* [https://www.nasa.gov/centers/glenn/about/bios/john_glenn.html John Glenn, 1921-2016], ''NASA''
 
* [http://johnglennhome.org/ The John & Annie Glenn Museum]
 
* [http://johnglennhome.org/ The John & Annie Glenn Museum]
 
* [https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9D71F7953BF96D95 John Glenn's Flight on ''Friendship 7'', MA-6&nbsp;– complete 5-hour capsule audio recording]
 
* [https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9D71F7953BF96D95 John Glenn's Flight on ''Friendship 7'', MA-6&nbsp;– complete 5-hour capsule audio recording]
* [http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/shuttle/archives/sts-95/ John Glenn's Flight on the Space Shuttle, STS-95]
 
 
* [http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0322625/ John Glenn IMDb profile]
 
* [http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0322625/ John Glenn IMDb profile]
 
* [http://www.astronautix.com/g/glenn.html Glenn, John Herschel Jr], ''Encyclopedia Astronautica''
 
* [http://www.astronautix.com/g/glenn.html Glenn, John Herschel Jr], ''Encyclopedia Astronautica''

Latest revision as of 02:28, 9 February 2023

John Glenn
John Glenn


Chair of the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee
In office
January 3, 1987 – January 3, 1995
Preceded by William V. Roth Jr.
Succeeded by William V. Roth Jr.

United States Senator
In office
December 24, 1974 – January 3, 1999
Preceded by Howard Metzenbaum
Succeeded by George Voinovich

Born July 18 1921(1921-07-18)
Cambridge, Ohio, U.S.
Died December 8 2016 (aged 95)
Columbus, Ohio, U.S.
Political party Democratic
Spouse Annie Castor (m. 1943)
Children 2
Alma mater Muskingum University (BS)
University of Maryland

John Herschel Glenn Jr. (July 18, 1921 – December 8, 2016) was an American aviator, engineer, astronaut, and United States Senator from Ohio. In 1962 he was the first American to orbit the Earth, circling it three times. Before joining NASA, Glenn was a distinguished fighter pilot in World War II and Korea with six Distinguished Flying Crosses and eighteen clusters on his Air Medal.

Glenn was one of the Mercury Seven military test pilots selected in 1959 by NASA as the United States' first astronauts. On February 20, 1962, he flew the Friendship 7 mission, becoming the first American to orbit the Earth and the fifth person in space. Glenn received the NASA Distinguished Service Medal, the Congressional Space Medal of Honor in 1978, was inducted into the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame in 1990, and was the last surviving member of the Mercury Seven.

Glenn resigned from NASA in 1964 and retired from the Marine Corps the following year to run for political office. A member of the Democratic Party, Glenn first won election to the Senate in 1974 and served for 24 years until January 3, 1999.

John Glenn NASA Portrait
John Glenn

In 1998, still a sitting senator, Glenn was the oldest person to fly in space as a crew member of the Discovery space shuttle and the only person to fly in both the Mercury and Space Shuttle programs. He received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2012 in recognition of his lifelong service to his country.

Early life and education

John Herschel Glenn Jr. was born on July 18, 1921 in Cambridge, Ohio, the son of John Herschel Glenn, Sr. (1895–1966), owner of the Glenn Plumbing Company, and teacher Clara Teresa Sproat (1897–1971).[1] He was raised in nearby New Concord[2] with his adopted sister Jean.[3] He attended New Concord Elementary School.[4]

After graduating from New Concord High School in 1939, Glenn studied engineering at Muskingum College, where he was a member of the Stag Club fraternity.[5] He earned a private pilot license for credit in a physics course in 1941.[6] Glenn did not complete his senior year in residence due to becoming a fighter pilot during World War II, nor did he take a proficiency exam, both required by the school for its Bachelor of Science degree. He later took courses at the University of Maryland, again without fulfilling the graduation requirements. In 1960, he became concerned about his lack of qualifications when NASA was selecting astronauts for the Mercury program and petitioned Muskingum to receive a degree. His petition was rejected, but Muskingum awarded Glenn an honorary doctorate after his Mercury space flight; they subsequently approved his petition and awarded his bachelors degree in February, 1962.[7]

Annie and John Glenn in 1965

On April 6, 1943 Glenn married his high school sweetheart, Anna Margaret Castor (1920-2020), who also attended Muskingum College. They had two children—John David (b. 1945) and Carolyn Ann (b. 1947)—and two grandchildren,[2] and remained married for 73 years until his death. Glenn's NASA friend, Charles Bolden, was inspired by the marriage. "For anyone who's contemplating marriage, you ought to go to school on the Glenns, because they can teach us a lot about what unending love, with undying respect and admiration for each other means ... There was never a question whether Annie was the love of his life."[8]

A Freemason, Glenn was a member of Concord Lodge #688 in New Concord, Ohio. He received all of his degrees in full in a "Mason at Sight" ceremony from the Grand Master of Ohio in 1978, fourteen years after petitioning his lodge. In 1998, Glenn became a 32nd-degree Scottish Rite Mason in the Valley of Cincinnati (NMJ); the following year, he received the 33rd degree of the Scottish Rite.[9]

Glenn was an ordained elder of the Presbyterian Church.[2] Although his religious faith was kindled before he became an astronaut, it was reinforced after he traveled in space. "To look out at this kind of creation and not believe in God is to me impossible," said Glenn after his second space voyage.[10] He saw no contradiction between belief in God and the knowledge that evolution is "a fact," and believed that evolution should be taught in schools: "I don't see that I'm any less religious by the fact that I can appreciate the fact that science just records that we change with evolution and time, and that's a fact. It doesn't mean it's less wondrous and it doesn't mean that there can't be some power greater than any of us that has been behind and is behind whatever is going on."[11]

Glenn was an original owner of a Holiday Inn franchise near Orlando, Florida, which is today the Seralago Hotel & Suites Main Gate East.[12] Glenn's business partner was Henri Landwirth, a Holocaust survivor.[13] He remembered learning about Landwirth's background: "Henri doesn't talk about it much. It was years before he spoke about it with me and then only because of an accident. We were down in Florida during the space program. Everyone was wearing short-sleeved Ban-Lon shirts, everyone but Henri. Then one day I saw Henri at the pool and noticed the number on his arm. I told Henri that if it were me I'd wear that number like a medal with a spotlight on it."[13]

In June 2014, Glenn underwent successful heart valve replacement surgery at the Cleveland Clinic.[14] In early December 2016, he was hospitalized at the James Cancer Hospital of Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center in Columbus.[15] Glenn died on December 8, 2016, at the OSU Wexner Medical Center.[16] He was interred in a private ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery after lying in state at the Ohio Statehouse and a public memorial service was held at Mershon Auditorium at Ohio State University.[16]

Military career

World War II

When the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor brought the United States into World War II, Glenn quit college to enlist in the U.S. Army Air Corps. Never called to duty, in March 1942 he enlisted as a U.S. Navy aviation cadet. Glenn attended the University of Iowa in Iowa City for pre-flight training and continued at Naval Air Station Olathe in Kansas for primary training, where he made his first solo flight in a military aircraft. During advanced training at Naval Air Station Corpus Christi in Texas, he accepted an offer to transfer to the U.S. Marine Corps.

Completing his training in March 1943, Glenn was commissioned as a second lieutenant. After advanced training at Camp Kearny, California, he was assigned to Marine Squadron VMJ-353 and flew R4D transport planes. Glenn was posted to the Marine Corps Air Station El Centro in California in July 1943 and joined VMO-155, which flew the F4F Wildcat fighter.[3] VMO-155 re-equipped with the F4U Corsair in September 1943.[4]

He was promoted to first lieutenant in October 1943, and shipped out to Hawaii in January 1944.[3] It was intended that VMO-155 would move to the Marshall Islands but this was delayed, and on February 21 it moved to Midway Atoll and became part of the garrison.[4] Beginning in June 1944, stationed in the Marshall Islands, Glenn flew over 50 combat missions in the area.[3] Hit by anti-aircraft fire five times, he received two Distinguished Flying Crosses and ten Air Medals.

Glenn returned to the United States at the end of his one-year tour of duty in 1945, and was assigned to Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point in North Carolina and then to Naval Air Station Patuxent River in Maryland. He was promoted to captain in July 1945, shortly before the Pacific War's end. Glenn was ordered back to Cherry Point, where he joined VMF-913 (another Corsair squadron).[4][3]

In March 1946, he was assigned to Marine Corps Air Station El Toro in southern California. Glenn volunteered for service with the occupation in North China, believing that it would be a short tour. He joined VMF-218, yet another Corsair squadron (based at Nanyuan Field near Beijing), in December 1946.[4] Glenn flew patrol missions until VMF-218 was transferred to Guam in March 1947, and he returned home in December 1948.

He was re-posted to NAS Corpus Christi, first as a student and then as a flight instructor.[3] In July 1951, Glenn was sent to the Amphibious Warfare School at Marine Corps Base Quantico in northern Virginia for a six-month course.[17] He then joined the staff of the Commandant, Marine Corps Schools. Given only four hours of flying time per month, Glenn maintained his proficiency (and flight pay) by flying on weekends.[4] He was promoted to major in July 1952.[3]

Korean War

Military portrait of Glenn

Glenn was ordered to South Korea in October 1952, late in the Korean War. On February 3, 1953 he reported to K-3 and was assigned to VMF-311, one of two Marine fighter squadrons there, as its operations officer. VMF-311, equipped with the F9F Panther jet fighter-bomber, was assigned a variety of missions. He flew 63 combat missions in Korea with VMF-311,[4] and was nicknamed "Magnet Ass" because of his ability to attract enemy flak (an occupational hazard of low-level close air support missions); twice he returned to base with over 250 holes in his plane.[18] Glenn flew for a time with Marine reservist Ted Williams (a future Hall of Fame baseball player with the Boston Red Sox) as his wingman,[4] and also flew with future major general Ralph H. Spanjer.[19]

Glenn had applied for an inter-service exchange position with the U.S. Air Force to fly the F-86 Sabre jet fighter-interceptor. In June 1953 he reported for duty with the 25th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, and flew 27 combat missions in the faster F-86. Glenn shot down his first MiG-15s in a dogfight on July 12, 1953. A second battle followed on July 19, and a third (during which four Sabres shot down three MiGs) on July 22. These were the final air victories of the war, which ended with an armistice five days later.[4] For his service in Korea, Glenn received two more Distinguished Flying Crosses and eight more Air Medals.[20][3]

Glenn later wrote:

Since the days of the Lafayette Escadrille during World War I, pilots have viewed air-to-air combat as the ultimate test not only of their machines but of their own personal determination and flying skills. I was no exception.[4]

Test pilot

Glenn's USAF F-86F, dubbed "MiG Mad Marine", during the Korean War in 1953

With his combat experience as a fighter pilot, Glenn applied for training as a test pilot while he was still in Korea. He reported to the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School at NAS Patuxent River in Maryland in January 1954, and graduated in July.[4][21]

Glenn's first assignment was testing the FJ-3 Fury, a Navy version of the F-86 Sabre which nearly killed him when its cockpit depressurized and its oxygen system failed.[4] He also tested the armament of aircraft such as the Vought F7U Cutlass and F8U Crusader. From November 1956 to April 1959, Glenn was assigned to the Fighter Design Branch of the Navy Bureau of Aeronautics in Washington, D.C. and attended the University of Maryland.[22]

On July 16, 1957 he made the first supersonic transcontinental flight,[23] At that time, the transcontinental speed record, held by an Air Force Republic F-84 Thunderjet, was 3 hours 45 minutes and Glenn calculated that an F8U Crusader could do it faster. Since its 586-mile-per-hour (943 km/h) air speed was faster than that of a .45 caliber bullet, Glenn called his project Project Bullet.[4] His flight time was 3 hours, 23 minutes and 8.3 seconds,[22] averaging supersonic speed despite three in-flight refuelings when speeds dropped below 300 miles per hour (480 km/h). Glenn's on-board camera took the first continuous, transcontinental panoramic photograph of the United States. When he flew over his hometown, a child reportedly ran to the Glenn house and yelled "Johnny dropped a bomb!" as his sonic boom shook the town.[4] [24] Glenn received his fifth Distinguished Flying Cross for this mission,[4] and he was promoted to lieutenant colonel on April 1, 1959.[3] He now had nearly 9,000 hours of flying time, including about 3,000 hours in jets.[22]

NASA career

Pre-selection

Glenn in his Mercury spacesuit

While Glenn was on duty at Patuxent and in Washington, he began reading everything he could find about space. His office was asked to send a test pilot to Langley Air Force Base in Virginia to make runs on a spaceflight simulator, part of NASA research of reentry-vehicle shapes. The pilot would also be sent to the Naval Air Development Center in Johnsville, Pennsylvania, and would be subjected to high g-forces in a centrifuge for comparison with data collected in the simulator. Glenn's request for the position was granted, and he spent several days at Langley and a week in Johnsville for the testing.[6]

Before Glenn's appointment as an astronaut in the Mercury program, he participated in capsule design. NASA had asked military-service members to participate in planning the mockup of a capsule. Since Glenn had participated in the research at Langley and Johnsville, been on mock-up boards in the Navy and understood capsules, he was sent to the McDonnell plant in St. Louis as a service adviser to the mockup board.[6]

Selection

In 1958, the newly-formed National Aeronautics and Space Administration began a recruiting program for astronauts. Each astronaut had to be a military test pilot between the ages of 25 and 40 with sufficient flight hours, no more than 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) in height, and possess a degree in a scientific field. The group was narrowed down to seven astronauts (Glenn, Alan Shepard, Gus Grissom, Scott Carpenter, Wally Schirra, Gordon Cooper, and Deke Slayton), who were introduced to the public at a NASA press conference in April 1959. Glenn barely met the requirements; he was near the age cutoff (40) and lacked a science-based degree at the time,[22] but he was on a list of 100 test pilots who met the minimum requirements to become an astronaut. The candidates were screened, and the number of potential astronauts was reduced to 32. The candidates underwent a battery of tests, including physical tests to measure stamina and psychological tests to measure maturity, alertness, and motivation.[6]

After testing, the candidates had to wait 10 to 12 days for the results. Glenn had returned to his position at the Navy Bureau of Aeronautics when he received a call from the associate director of Project Mercury, Charles Donlan, offering him a position as one of the Mercury Seven.[6] He remained an officer in the Marine Corps after his selection in 1959,[17] and was assigned to the NASA Space Task Group at Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia.[22] The task force was moved to Houston in 1962, and became part of the NASA Manned Spacecraft Center.[22]

Project Mercury

Training

The astronauts trained at Langley. A portion of the training was education, and they studied subjects such as graduate-level introductory space science. The training also had a practical aspect, which included scuba diving and work in simulators.[6] Astronauts were given an additional role in the spaceflight program, to ensure pilot input in design. Glenn's role was cockpit layout design and control functioning for the Mercury and early Apollo programs,[6][22] and he was a backup pilot for Shepard and Grissom on the Freedom 7 and Liberty Bell 7 sub-orbital missions.[22]

Friendship 7 flight

John Glen during his flight in Friendship 7 as he uses a photometer to view the sun
Glenn (center) with President John F. Kennedy and General Leighton I. Davis, celebrating his orbital flight in 1962

The flight took off on February 20, 1962 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. There were eleven delays during the countdown due to equipment malfunctions, improvements to equipment functioning properly and the weather. During Glenn's first orbit, a scheduled 30-minute test to see if he could fly the spacecraft manually became significant when a failure of the automatic-control system was detected at the end of the first orbit; this forced Glenn to operate in manual mode for the second and third orbits and re-entry.[25]

Later in the flight, telemetry indicated that the heat shield had loosened. If the telemetry was correct, Glenn's spacecraft would probably have been destroyed during re-entry from the intense heat.[25] Flight controllers had him modify his re-entry procedure by keeping his retrorocket pack over the shield to help retain it during re-entry. Leaving the retrorocket pack on made large chunks of flaming debris fly past the window of his capsule during re-entry, although Glenn thought it might have been the heat shield. He told an interviewer, "Fortunately it was the rocket pack—or I wouldn't be answering these questions."[25] After the flight, it was determined that the indicator was faulty.[26]

Friendship 7 safely splashed down 800 miles (1,290 km) southeast of Cape Canaveral after Glenn's 4-hour, 55-minute flight.[6] The spacecraft landed 41 miles (66 km) west and 19 miles (31 km) north of the target landing site. Friendship 7 was recovered by the USS Noa, which had the spacecraft on the deck 21 minutes after landing; Glenn was in the capsule during the recovery operation. He carried a note on the flight which read, "I am a stranger. I come in peace. Take me to your leader and there will be a massive reward for you in eternity" in several languages, in case he landed near southern Pacific Ocean islands. The flight took Glenn to a maximum altitude (apogee) of about 162 miles (261 km) and a minimum altitude of 100 miles (160 km) (perigee) at a speed of about 17,500 miles per hour (28,200 km/h).[27]

Glenn is honored by President Kennedy at temporary Manned Spacecraft Center facilities at Cape Canaveral, Florida, three days after his flight.

The flight made Glenn the first American to orbit the Earth;[28] the third American in space, he was the fifth human in space.[26][27] Perth, Western Australia, became known worldwide as the "City of Light" when residents turned on their house, car, and streetlights as Glenn passed overhead.[29] The city repeated the act when Glenn rode the Space Shuttle in 1998.[30] His flight occurred while the U.S. and the Soviet Union were embroiled in the Cold War and competing in the Space Race. The "best day of his life," it renewed U.S. confidence. [31]

As the first American in orbit Glenn became a national hero, met President Kennedy, and received a ticker-tape parade in New York City reminiscent of those honoring Charles Lindbergh and other dignitaries.[26] He became "so valuable to the nation as an iconic figure," according to NASA administrator Charles Bolden, that Kennedy would not "risk putting him back in space again."[32] On February 23, 1962, President Kennedy gave him the NASA Distinguished Service Medal.[26]

Resignation

Since Glenn was 42 years old, he was unlikely to be chosen for a lunar landing.[6] He resigned from NASA on January 16, 1964, and announced his Democratic Party candidacy for the U.S. Senate from his home state of Ohio the following day. On February 26 Glenn received a concussion from hitting his head against a bathtub,[33] and he withdrew from the race on March 30. He went on convalescent leave from the Marine Corps until he fully recovered, which was required for his retirement. Glenn retired as a colonel on January 1, 1965, becoming an executive with Royal Crown Cola.[26]

Political career

U.S. Senate

During Glenn's training, NASA psychologists had determined that he was the astronaut best suited for public life.[34] Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy suggested to Glenn and his wife in December 1962 that he run for the U.S. Senate from Ohio in 1964, challenging aging incumbent Stephen M. Young (1889–1984) in the Democratic primary election. Glenn remained close to the Kennedy family; he was with Robert Kennedy in Los Angeles when he was assassinated in 1968, and was a pallbearer at Kennedy's funeral in New York City.[2]

In 1970, Young did not seek reelection and the seat was open. Glenn was defeated in the Democratic primary by businessman Howard Metzenbaum (who received 51 percent of the vote to Glenn's 49 percent), but Metzenbaum lost the general election to Robert Taft Jr. In 1974, Glenn declined Ohio governor John J. Gilligan and the state Democratic party's request that he run for lieutenant governor and challenged Metzenbaum again for the other Ohio Senate seat (vacated by Republican William B. Saxbe, who became U.S. Attorney General in early 1974). Metzenbaum was the short-term incumbent, appointed by Gilligan in January.

In the primary, Metzenbaum contrasted his strong business background with Glenn's military and astronaut credentials and said that his opponent had "never held a payroll." Glenn's reply became known as the "Gold Star Mothers" speech. He told Metzenbaum to go to a veterans' hospital and "look those men with mangled bodies in the eyes and tell them they didn't hold a job. You go with me to any Gold Star mother and you look her in the eye and tell her that her son did not hold a job." According to many observers, Glenn's "Gold Star Mothers" speech won him the primary.[35] He defeated Metzenbaum 54 to 46 percent before defeating Ralph Perk (the Republican mayor of Cleveland) in the general election, beginning a Senate career which would continue until 1999.

Savings and loan scandal

Glenn was one of the Keating Five: U.S. senators who were caught up in the savings and loan crisis after he accepted a $200,000 campaign contribution from Lincoln Savings and Loan Association head Charles Keating. Glenn and Republican senator John McCain were the only senators who were exonerated, although the Senate commission found that Glenn had exercised "poor judgment." The association of his name with the scandal made Republicans hopeful that he could be defeated in the 1992 campaign, but Glenn defeated lieutenant governor Mike DeWine to retain his seat.[36]

Presidential politics

In 1976, Glenn was a candidate for the Democratic vice-presidential nomination. However, his keynote address at the Democratic National Convention failed to impress the delegates and the nomination went to veteran politician Walter Mondale.[37] Glenn also ran for the 1984 Democratic presidential nomination.[38]

He and his staff were concerned about the 1983 release of The Right Stuff, a film about the Mercury Seven based on the best-selling Tom Wolfe book of the same name. Wolfe had called Glenn a "zealous moralizer," and he did not attend the film's Washington premiere on October 16, 1983. Reviewers saw Ed Harris' portrayal of Glenn as heroic, however, and his staff began to publicize the film to the press. Aide Greg Schneiders suggested an unusual strategy, similar to Glenn's personal campaign and voting style, where he would avoid appealing to special interest groups and instead seek support from ordinary Democratic primary voters: the "constituency of the whole."[38] Mondale defeated Glenn for the nomination, however, and he carried $3 million in campaign debt for over 20 years before receiving a reprieve from the Federal Election Commission.[39] He was considered as a vice-presidential candidate in 1984, 1988, and 1992.[32]

Issues

As a senator, Glenn was chief author of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Act of 1978,[40] chaired the Committee on Governmental Affairs from 1987 to 1995 and sat on the Foreign Relations and Armed Services committees and the Special Committee on Aging.[41]

When the Republican Party regained control of the Senate, Glenn was the ranking minority member on the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations (chaired by Maine senator Susan Collins) which investigated illegal foreign donations by China to U.S. political campaigns for the 1996 election.[42]

Return to space

On January 16, 1998, NASA administrator Dan Goldin announced that Glenn would be part of the STS-95 crew;[43] this made him, at age 77, the oldest person to fly in space. NASA and the National Institute of Aging (NIA) planned to use Glenn as a test subject for research, with biometrics taken before, during and after his flight. Some experiments (in circadian rhythms, for example) compared him with the younger crew members. In addition to these tests, he was in charge of the flight's photography and videography. Glenn returned to space on the Space Shuttle on October 29, 1998, as a Payload Specialist on Discovery.[22]

Glenn wrote in his memoir that he had no idea that NASA was willing to send him back into space when the agency made its announcement.[44] His participation in the nine-day mission was criticized by some members of the space community as a favor granted by president Bill Clinton.

In a 2012 interview, Glenn said that the purpose of his flight was "to make measurements and do research on me at the age of 77 to see if we could find out by comparing the results on me in space with the younger people and maybe get answers to some of those things on the immune system or protein turnover or vestibular functions and other things — heart changes."[45]

After STS-95 returned safely, its crew received a ticker-tape parade; this made Glenn the tenth individual to receive multiple ticker-tape parades. On October 15, 1998, NASA Road 1 (the main causeway to the Johnson Space Center) was renamed John Glenn Parkway for several months. In 2001, Glenn strenuously opposed sending Dennis Tito, the world's first space tourist, to the International Space Station because Tito's trip had no scientific purpose.[46]

Public-affairs institute

Glenn helped found the John Glenn Institute for Public Service and Public Policy at Ohio State University in 1998 to encourage public service. On July 22, 2006, the institute merged with OSU's School of Public Policy and Management to become the John Glenn School of Public Affairs; Glenn held an adjunct professorship at the school, later renamed the John Glenn College of Public Affairs.[47]

Public appearances

Glenn with President Kennedy and Soviet cosmonaut Gherman Titov at the White House, 1962

Glenn was an honorary member of the International Academy of Astronautics and a member of the Society of Experimental Test Pilots, Marine Corps Aviation Association, Order of Daedalians, National Space Club Board of Trustees, National Space Society Board of Governors, International Association of Holiday Inns, Ohio Democratic Party, State Democratic Executive Committee, Franklin County (Ohio) Democratic Party and the 10th District (Ohio) Democratic Action Club.[6] In 2001 he guest-starred as himself on the American television sitcom, Frasier.[48]

On September 5, 2009, John and Annie Glenn dotted the "i" in Ohio State University's Script Ohio marching band performance during the Ohio State–Navy football-game halftime show. Other non-band members to receive the honor include Bob Hope, Woody Hayes, Jack Nicklaus and Earle Bruce.[49] On February 20, 2012, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Friendship 7 flight, Glenn had an unexpected opportunity to speak with the orbiting crew of the International Space Station when he was onstage with NASA Administrator Charlie Bolden at Ohio State University.[50]

Glenn at the ceremony transferring the space shuttle Discovery to the Smithsonian Institution

On April 19, 2012, Glenn participated in the ceremonial transfer of the retired Space Shuttle Discovery from NASA to the Smithsonian Institution for permanent display at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center. He criticized the "unfortunate" decision to end the Space Shuttle program, saying that grounding the shuttles delayed research.[45]

In June 2016, the Port Columbus, Ohio airport was renamed the John Glenn Columbus International Airport. The Glenns attended the ceremony, and he spoke about how visiting the airport as a child kindled his interest in flying.[51]

Legacy

In his official statement President Barack Obama said that Glenn, "the first American to orbit the Earth, reminded us that with courage and a spirit of discovery there's no limit to the heights we can reach together."[52] Tributes were also paid by former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and president-elect Donald Trump. Former and current astronauts added tributes; so did NASA Administrator and former shuttle astronaut Charles Bolden, who wrote: "John Glenn's legacy is one of risk and accomplishment, of history created and duty to country carried out under great pressure with the whole world watching."[53]

President Obama ordered flags to be flown at half-mast until Glenn's burial.[54]

Awards and honors

Receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Barack Obama in 2010

In 1961 Glenn received an honorary LL.D from Muskingum University, the college he attended before joining the military in World War II.[7] He received honorary doctorates from Nihon University in Tokyo, Wagner College in Staten Island, New York and New Hampshire College in Manchester, New Hampshire.

Glenn was inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame in 1976[55] and the International Space Hall of Fame in 1977.[27] In 1990, he was inducted into the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame.[56]

In 2000 Glenn received the U.S. Senator John Heinz Award for public service by an elected or appointed official, one of the annual Jefferson Awards. Four years later, he received the Woodrow Wilson Award for Public Service from the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars of the Smithsonian Institution.[57] In 2009, Glenn received an honorary LL.D from Williams College;[58] the following year, he received an honorary doctorate of public service degree from Ohio Northern University.[59]

Quincy Jones presents platinum copies of "Fly Me to the Moon" (from It Might as Well Be Swing) to Glenn and Apollo 11 Commander Neil Armstrong

In 2013, Flying magazine ranked Glenn 26th on its "51 Heroes & Heroines of Aviation" list.[60] On September 12, 2016 Blue Origin announced the New Glenn, a rocket.[61]

The Glenn Research Center at Lewis Field in Cleveland is named after him, and the Senator John Glenn Highway runs along a stretch of I-480 in Ohio across from the Glenn Research Center. Colonel Glenn Highway (which passes Wright-Patterson Air Force Base and Wright State University near Dayton, Ohio), John Glenn High School in his hometown of New Concord, and Col. John Glenn Elementary in Seven Hills, Ohio, are also named for him. High schools in Westland and Bay City, Michigan; Walkerton, Indiana; San Angelo, Texas, and Norwalk, California bear Glenn's name. His boyhood home in New Concord has been restored as an historic house museum and education center.[62]

The fireboat John H. Glenn Jr., operated by the District of Columbia Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department and protecting sections of the Potomac and Anacostia Rivers which run through Washington, D.C., was named for him. The USNS John Glenn (T-MLP-2), a mobile landing platform delivered to the U.S. Navy on March 12, 2014, is also named for Glenn. It was christened on February 1, 2014, in San Diego at General Dynamics' National Steel and Shipbuilding Company.[63]

Gallery

Notes

  1. Parents of Astronaut John Glenn View Friendship 7 Space Capsule John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Paul Kupperberg, John Glenn: The First American in Orbit and His Return to Space (Rosen Publishing Group, 2004, ISBN 978-0823944606).
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 Colin Burgess, Friendship 7: The Epic Orbital Flight of John H. Glenn, Jr. (Springer, 2015, ISBN 978-3319156538).
  4. 4.00 4.01 4.02 4.03 4.04 4.05 4.06 4.07 4.08 4.09 4.10 4.11 4.12 4.13 4.14 John H. Glenn and Nick Taylor, John Glenn: A Memoir (New York: Bantam Books, 2000, ISBN 978-0553581577).
  5. John Glenn NASA Fandom. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
  6. 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 6.6 6.7 6.8 6.9 Tara Gray, 40th Anniversary of Mercury 7: John Herschel Glenn, Jr. The 40th Anniversary of the Mercury Seven. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
  7. 7.0 7.1 College says Glenn degree was deserved The Day, October 4, 1983. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
  8. NASA Remembers American Legend John Glenn NASA, December 8, 2016. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
  9. Christopher Hodapp, Illus. Brother John H. Glenn, Jr. December 10, 2016. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
  10. Julie Zauzmer, In space, John Glenn saw the face of God: 'It just strengthens my faith' Washington Post, December 8, 2016. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
  11. John Glenn Says Evolution Should Be Taught In Schools The Huffington Post, May 20, 2015. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
  12. The History of our Kissimmee Family Hotel. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
  13. 13.0 13.1 Michael Kramer, "John Glenn: The Right Stuff," New York Magazine, January 31, 1983.
  14. John Newsome and Joshua Berlinger, John Glenn undergoes successful heart surgery CNN, June 12, 2014. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
  15. Ashley Strickland, Former senator, astronaut John Glenn hospitalized CNN, December 7, 2016. Retrieved Feebruary 5, 2021.
  16. 16.0 16.1 Joe Hallett, John Glenn, American hero, aviation icon and former U.S. senator, dies at 95 The Columbus Dispatch, December 8, 2016. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
  17. 17.0 17.1 Rafael Tilton, John Glenn (Lucent Books, 2000, ISBN 978-1560066897).
  18. Peter B. Mersky, U.S. Marine Corps Aviation — 1912 to the present (Annapolis, MD: The Nautical and Aviation Publishing Company of America, 1983, ISBN 978-0933852396).
  19. Meg McSherry Breslin, Ralph H. Spanjer, 78: Led Military Academy Chicago Tribune, February 12, 1999. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
  20. John Faherty, John Glenn, astronaut and senator, dead at age 95 USA Today, December 8, 2016. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
  21. Steve Vogel, Pax River Yields a Constellation of Astronaut Candidates The Washington Post, June 7, 1998. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
  22. 22.0 22.1 22.2 22.3 22.4 22.5 22.6 22.7 22.8 Brian Dunbar, Profile of John Glenn NASA, August 3, 2017. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
  23. Jason Rhian, Silent Seven: John Glenn, last Mercury astronaut, dies at 95 – SpaceFlight Insider Spaceflight Insider, December 8, 2016. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
  24. Suzanne Deffree, 'Project Bullet' sets transcontinental speed record EDN, July 16, 2012. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
  25. 25.0 25.1 25.2 25.3 NASA Honors a Legendary Astronaut NASA, February 21, 2006. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  26. 26.0 26.1 26.2 26.3 26.4 John Glenn Stirs Controversy CBS, October 8, 1998. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  27. 27.0 27.1 27.2 John H. Glenn Jr. New Mexico Museum of Space History. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  28. Glenn Orbits the Earth NASA, February 16, 2012. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  29. City of light – 50 years in Space Western Australian Museum. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  30. Perth Turns on Lights for Glenn Associated Press, October 30, 1998. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  31. Marina Koren, Remembering John Glenn The Atlantic, December 8, 2016. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  32. 32.0 32.1 Russell Lewis, John Glenn, First American To Orbit The Earth, Dies At 95 All Things Considered, NPR, December 8, 2016. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  33. John Glenn's plans all derailed today Kentucky New Era, February 22, 1964. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  34. John Catchpole, Project Mercury: NASA's First Manned Space Programme (Springer, 2001, ISBN 978-1852334062).
  35. Monika Koli, 20 Greatest Astronauts of the World (Prabhat Prakashan, 2017).
  36. Clifford Krauss, In Big Re-election Fight, Glenn Tests Hero Image The New York Times, October 15, 1992. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  37. Eugene Kennedy, John Glenn's Presidential Countdown The New York Times, October 11, 1981. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  38. 38.0 38.1 Howell Raines, John Glenn: The Hero as Candidate The New York Times, November 13, 1983. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  39. Michael Luo, For Clinton, Millions in Debt and Few Options The New York Times, June 10, 2008. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  40. Rajiv Nayan (ed.), The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and India (Routledge, 2013, ISBN 978-0415851282).
  41. Chris Hale, Former Senator and Astronaut John Glenn Dies at 95 Roll Call, December 8, 2016. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  42. Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations Historical Background US Senate Committee on Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs, December 1, 2000. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  43. William Harwood, John Glenn set for historic return to space (01/16/98) Shuttle Discovery: John Glenn's Return to Space, CBS News. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  44. John H. Glenn and Nick Taylor, John Glenn: A Memoir (New York: Bantam Books, 2000, ISBN 978-0553581577).
  45. 45.0 45.1 Adrian Apollo, Interview with John Glenn August 16, 2012.
  46. Richard Stenger, John Glenn: Space tourist cheapening Alpha CNN, May 3, 2001. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  47. John Glenn John Glenn College of Public Affairs Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  48. John Glenn appears on Emmy-award winning 'Frasier' Ohio State News, March 5, 2001. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  49. Traditions The Ohio State University Marching and Athletic Bands. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  50. Kantele Franko, Armstrong honors Glenn 50 years after his orbit Associated Press, February 20, 2012. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  51. Julie Carr Smyth, Ohio's Columbus airport renamed for astronaut John Glenn USA Today, June 30, 2016. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  52. Statement by the President on the Passing of John Glenn The White House, December 8, 2016. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  53. Robert Z. Pearlman, John Glenn Memorialized with 'Godspeed' Radio Hail Turned Hashtag Space.com, December 9, 2016. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  54. Alan Boyle, Obama orders U.S. flags to fly at half-staff to mark space hero John Glenn's passing Geekwire.com, December 9, 2016. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  55. Glenn, John Herschel, Jr. National Aviation Hall of Fame. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  56. John Glenn Astronaut Scholarship Foundation. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  57. Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars of the Smithsonian Institution to Honor Bernard Arnault and Jacques Attali in Washington, D.C. Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, Mar 22, 2011. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  58. Honorary Degrees Williams College. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  59. Tyrel Linkhorn, Honorary doctorate degree for John Glenn The Lima News, May 24, 2010. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  60. Isabel Goyer, 51 Heroes & Heroines of Aviation Flying, July 24, 2013. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  61. Daniel Victor, Meet New Glenn, the Blue Origin Rocket That May Someday Take You to Space The New York Times, September 12, 2016. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  62. The John & Annie Glenn Museum Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  63. Robert Z. Pearlman, Godspeed the John Glenn: Navy Christens Ship for 1st American to Orbit Earth Space.com, February 3, 2014. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  64. John Glenn, first American to orbit Earth, dies aged 95 BBC, December 8, 2016. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  65. Hokulea’s Nainoa Thompson receives National Geographic award KHON TV, June 18, 2016. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  66. Lorle Porter, John Glenn's New Concord (Arcadia Publishing, 2001, ISBN 978-0738508436).
  67. Thomas D. White National Defense Award presented to Senator John Glenn by the United States Air Force Academy Retrieved February 9, 2021.

References
ISBN links support NWE through referral fees

  • Burgess, Colin. Friendship 7: The Epic Orbital Flight of John H. Glenn, Jr.. Springer, 2015. ISBN 978-3319156538
  • Catchpole, John. Project Mercury: NASA's First Manned Space Programme. Springer, 2001. ISBN 978-1852334062
  • Fenno, Richard F., Jr. The Presidential Odyssey of John Glenn. Washington, DC: CQ Press, 1990. ISBN 978-0871875679
  • Glenn, John H., and Nick Taylor. John Glenn: A Memoir. New York: Bantam Books, 2000. ISBN 978-0553581577
  • Koli, Monika. 20 Greatest Astronauts of the World. Prabhat Prakashan, 2017. ASIN B01K25SL94
  • Kupperberg, Paul. John Glenn: The First American in Orbit and His Return to Space. Rosen Publishing Group, 2004. ISBN 978-0823944606
  • Mersky, Peter B. U.S. Marine Corps Aviation — 1912 to the present. Annapolis, MD: The Nautical and Aviation Publishing Company of America, 1983. ISBN 978-0933852396
  • Nayan, Rajiv (ed.). The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and India. Routledge, 2013. ISBN 978-0415851282
  • Porter, Lorle. John Glenn's New Concord. Arcadia Publishing, 2001. ISBN 978-0738508436
  • Shettle, M.L., Jr. United States Marine Corps Air Stations of World War II. Bowersville, GA: Schaertel Publishing, 2001. ISBN 978-0964338821
  • Tilton, Rafael. John Glenn. Lucent Books, 2000. ISBN 978-1560066897

External links

All links retrieved August 3, 2022.


Party Political Offices
Preceded by:
John Gilligan
Democratic nominee for Senator from Ohio
(Class 3)

1974, 1980, 1986, 1992
Succeeded by: Mary Boyle
Preceded by:
Reubin Askew
Keynote Speaker of the Democratic National Convention
1976
Served alongside: Barbara Jordan
Succeeded by: Mo Udall
United States Senate
Preceded by:
Howard Metzenbaum
United States Senator (Class 3) from Ohio
1974–1999
Served alongside: Robert Taft, Howard Metzenbaum, Mike DeWine
Succeeded by: George Voinovich
Preceded by:
William Roth
Chair of Senate Governmental Affairs Committee
1987–1995
Succeeded by: William Roth
Honorary Titles
Preceded by:
Edward Brooke
Oldest Living United States Senator
(Sitting or Former)

January 3, 2015–December 8, 2016
Succeeded by: Ernest Hollings

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