John Glenn became the first U.S. astronaut to orbit the Earth, flying a ship called the Friendship 7 around the world in a nearly 5-hour flight on February 20, 1962. Glenn also had political aspirations, running as a Democrat for a U.S. Senate seat for Ohio in 1964.
John Glenn, First Astronaut to Orbit the Earth, Dies at 95
![FILE - John Glenn, standing next to his Friendship 7 capsule in which he made his historic orbital flight, meets with President John F. Kennedy. Mrs. Glenn stands next to her husband.](https://gdb.voanews.com/036FE802-5E6A-4484-8510-D20F71ABBD7A_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
9
FILE - John Glenn, standing next to his Friendship 7 capsule in which he made his historic orbital flight, meets with President John F. Kennedy. Mrs. Glenn stands next to her husband.
![FILE - U.S. President John F. Kennedy pays tribute to astronaut John H. Glenn Jr. for his February 1962 flight aboard Friendship 7. The Mercury-Atlas 6 mission marked the free world's first orbital manned flight.](https://gdb.voanews.com/A7CB9AD7-3C86-4C87-88CB-FBF4BCA0903A_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
10
FILE - U.S. President John F. Kennedy pays tribute to astronaut John H. Glenn Jr. for his February 1962 flight aboard Friendship 7. The Mercury-Atlas 6 mission marked the free world's first orbital manned flight.
![A camera onboard the "Friendship 7" Mercury spacecraft photographs astronaut John H. Glenn Jr. during his historic flight, Feb. 20, 1962.](https://gdb.voanews.com/BA934405-212D-4332-948B-2433EC96FA25_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
11
A camera onboard the "Friendship 7" Mercury spacecraft photographs astronaut John H. Glenn Jr. during his historic flight, Feb. 20, 1962.
![Astronaut John H. Glenn, Jr., undergoes a simulated orbital flight as part of his training for Project Mercury in the Manned Spacecraft Center's procedure trainer at Langley Air Force Base, Virginia, Nov. 29, 1961.](https://gdb.voanews.com/70C2E98B-1196-4805-B466-1E9A28E968EC_cx0_cy38_cw0_w1024_q10_r1_s.jpg)
12
Astronaut John H. Glenn, Jr., undergoes a simulated orbital flight as part of his training for Project Mercury in the Manned Spacecraft Center's procedure trainer at Langley Air Force Base, Virginia, Nov. 29, 1961.