First American astronaut to orbit Earth, John Glenn, dies at 95

Astronaut John Glenn poses on January 20 1962 during a training session before his 20 February 1962 NASAs Mercury program space flight aboard in the Mercury capsule Friendship 7 in which he became the first American to orbit the Earth AFP PHOTO NASAJohn Glenn who became one of the 20th centurys greatest explorers as the first American to orbit Earth and later as the worlds oldest astronaut and also had a long career as a US senator died in Ohio on Thursday at age 95Glenn the last surviving member of the original seven American Right Stuff Mercury astronauts died at the James Cancer Hospital at Ohio State University in Columbus said Hank Wilson a spokesman at the universitys John Glenn College of Public Affairs which Glenn helped foundGlenn was credited with reviving US pride after the Soviet Unions early domination of manned space exploration His three laps around the world in the Friendship 7 capsule on Feb 20 1962 forged a powerful link between the former fighter pilot and the Kennedyera quest to explore outer space as a New FrontierPresident Barack Obama who in 2012 awarded Glenn the nations highest civilian honour the Presidential Medal of Freedom said With Johns passing our nation has lost an icon When John Glenn blasted off from Cape Canaveral atop an Atlas rocket in 1962 he lifted the hopes of a nation Obama said in a statement And when his Friendship 7 spacecraft splashed down a few hours later the first American to orbit the Earth reminded us that with courage and a spirit of discovery theres no limit to the heights we can reach together Presidentelect Donald Trump said on Twitter the United States had lost a great pioneer of air and space in John Glenn He was a hero and inspired generations of future explorersAs the third of seven astronauts in NASAs soloflight Mercury program to venture into space Glenn became more of a media fixture than the others and was known for his composure and willingness to promote the program Glenns astronaut career as well as his record as a fighter pilot in World War Two and the Korean War helped propel him to the US Senate in 1974 where he represented his home state of Ohio for 24 years as a moderate Democrat His star was dimmed somewhat by a Senate investigation of several senators on whether special favours were done for a major campaign contributor He was cleared of wrongdoing Glenns entry into history came in early 1962 when fellow astronaut Scott Carpenter bade him Godspeed John Glenn just before the Ohio native was rocketed into space for a recordbreaking trip that would last just under five hoursView is tremendousZeroG gravity and I feel fine was Glenns succinct assessment of weightlessness several minutes into his mission Oh and that view is tremendous After splashdown and recovery in the Atlantic Glenn was treated as a hero addressing a joint session of Congress and feted in a New York tickertape parade Glenn had been hospitalized since Nov 25 He died peacefully according to a statement from his family and Ohio State University He left this earth for the third time as a happy and fulfilled person the statement said Glenns extraordinary courage intellect patriotism and humanity were the hallmarks of a life of greatness His missions have helped make possible everything our space program has since achieved and the human missions to an asteroid and Mars that we are striving toward now NASA Administrator Charles Bolden said Glenns experiences as a pioneer astronaut were chronicled in the book and movie The Right Stuff along with the other Mercury pilots The books author Tom Wolfe called Glenn the last true national hero America has ever had I donacirciquestiquestt think of myself that way Glenn told the New York Times in 2012 to mark the 50th anniversary of his flight I get up each day and have the same problems others have at my age As far as trying to analyse all the attention I received I will leave that to others Glenns historic flight made him a favourite of President John F Kennedy and his brother Robert who encouraged him to launch a political career that finally took off after a period as a businessman made him a millionaireHero statusEven before his Mercury flight Glenn qualified for hero status earning six Distinguished Flying Crosses and flying more than 150 missions in World War Two and the Korean War After Korea Glenn became a test pilot setting a transcontinental speed record from Los Angeles to New York in 1957 The determination and singlemindedness that marked Glenns military and space career did not save him from misjudgments and defeat in politics He lost his first bid for the Senate from Ohio in 1970 after abandoning a race in 1964 because of a head injury suffered in a fall He was elected in 1974 and was briefly considered as a running mate for Democratic presidential candidate Jimmy Carter in 1980 But a ponderous address at the Democratic National Convention people walked out caused Carter to remark that Glenn was the most boring man I ever met Glenn sought the Democratic presidential nomination himself in 1984 but was quickly eliminated by eventual nominee Walter Mondale Carters vice president His failure was all the more stinging because he had been touted as an early frontrunner In the Senate Glenn was respected as a thoughtful moderate with expertise in defence and foreign policy His lustre was dulled however by a Senate investigation of the Keating Five five senators suspected of doing favours for campaign contributor Charles Keating Jr The panel eventually found Glenn did nothing improper or illegalBack to spaceHe took a leading role in seeking to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons especially to Pakistan He was the author of a law that forced the United States to impose sanctions on India and Pakistan in 1998 after both countries conducted nuclear tests He also was a staunch advocate of a strong military and took a keen interest in strategic issues He retired from the Senate in 1999 Thirtysix years after his maiden space voyage Glenn became Americas first geriatric astronaut on Oct 29 1998 He was 77 when he blasted off as a mission specialist aboard the shuttle Discovery He saw it as a blow to the stereotyping of the elderly Maybe prior to this flight we were looked at as old geezers who ought to get out of the way Glenn said after his nineday shuttle mission Just because youre up in years some doesnt mean you dont have hopes and dreams and aspirations just as much as younger people do John Herschel Glenn Jr was born on July 18 1921 in Cambridge Ohio In his latter years he was an adjunct professor at the John Glenn College of Public Affairs He had a knee replacement operation in 2011 and heart surgery in 2014 Glenn is survived by his wife of 73 years his childhood sweetheart Annie Castor They had two children David and Lyn