John Glenn climbs into the Friendship 7 space capsule just before making his first trip into space on February 20, 1962. was catching up to the Soviet Union in space. Glenn’s orbital flight meant that the U.S.
Again, he came in third, following two Russian cosmonauts: Yuri Gagarin (April 1961) and Gherman Titov (August 1961). And he wasn’t the first earthling to orbit Earth. He was third, after the short suborbital flights of Alan Shepard (May 1961) and Virgil “Gus” Grissom (July 1961). Glenn wasn’t the first American in space. Glenn reached that speed, a first for any American. The mean orbital velocity needed to maintain a stable low-Earth orbit is about 17,000 miles per hour (28,000 km/h, or 7.8 km/s). In other words, to attain even a low-Earth orbit, the challenge is to reach a fast-enough speed. If you can get that speed, you’re home-free.’ As explained:Īs mission control performed its final system checks, test conductor Tom O’Malley initiated the launch sequence, adding a personal prayer, ‘May the good Lord ride all the way,’ to which Carpenter, the backup astronaut for the mission, added, ‘Godspeed, John Glenn.’ Carpenter later explained that he had come up with the phrase on the spot, but it did hold significance for most test pilots and astronauts: ‘In those days, speed was magic … and nobody had gone that fast. Schoolchildren (including me) watched on television as the countdown ended and Glenn blasted into space. Finally, with the weather cooperating and the Atlas problems resolved, Glenn strapped into Friendship 7 early on the morning of February 20, 1962. “Godspeed, John Glenn”Ītlas rocket and weather problems forced NASA to postpone Glenn’s orbital launch four times. LIFE magazine photographer Ralph Morse took this image on March 17, 1960. Order yours before they’re gone! NASA introduced its 1st astronauts – the Mercury 7 – on April 9, 1959. The 2022 lunar calendars are still available. Mercury for the Roman god of speed and Atlas 6 to indicate that this was the sixth mission to launch atop the powerful Atlas rocket. But NASA’s official name for Glenn’s mission was Mercury-Atlas 6. Glenn and his family decided on the word Friendship, adding the number 7 to honor his fellow Mercury astronauts. In those days, NASA astronauts gave personal nicknames to their space capsules. Glenn and his fellow astronauts rode cramped Mercury space capsules into the unknown. Author Thomas Wolfe immortalized them in his masterly 1979 book The Right Stuff.
Glenn was one of the first American astronauts, a member of the group NASA called the Mercury 7. and the Soviet Union competed to achieve important firsts in space. It was the ’60s, and the space race was on. The feat made Glenn a national hero and a household name. In 4 hours and 55 minutes, he circled the globe three times in his space capsule Friendship 7. John Glenn became the first American to orbit Earth on February 20, 1962, 60 years ago today. John Glenn – 1st American in orbit – 60 years ago today Astronaut Glenn sits outside the space capsule Friendship 7. John Glenn became the 1st American in orbit on February 20, 1962.
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