Read It Listen to an audio version of this page.

John Glenn
John Glenn
John Glenn was one of the first seven astronauts in NASA's space program.

John Glenn was born in Ohio in 1921. He and his wife have two children and two grandchildren.

John Glenn was a fighter pilot during World War II and the Korean conflict. In 1957, he set a record when he flew supersonic (very, very fast) speeds from Los Angeles to New York.

Senator Glenn was first chosen to be a NASA astronaut in 1959. In 1962, he became the first American to orbit the Earth. He was elected as one of Ohio's United States Senators in 1974.

In January of 1998, NASA announced that Senator Glenn was selected to fly aboard the Space Shuttle. He would help in research on how weightlessness affects the body of an older person.

This mission was launched on October 29, 1998 and lasted 9 days. It accomplished 134 Earth orbits, traveling 3.6 million miles in 213 hours and 44 minutes.

Star Dog icon (looking right)

A Question

What two records have already been set by John Glenn?

Star Dog icon (looking left)
Did you know
The Answer
Show me the Level 2 version of this page.

The StarChild site is a service of the High Energy Astrophysics Science Archive Research Center (HEASARC), within the Astrophysics Science Division (ASD) at NASA/ GSFC.

StarChild Authors: The StarChild Team
StarChild Graphics & Music: Acknowledgments
StarChild Project Leader: Dr. Laura A. Whitlock
Curator: J.D. Myers
Responsible NASA Official: Amber Straughn