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Jan. 11, 1961: Marine Lt. Col. John Glenn, in a space flight suit, reaches for some of the controls inside a Mercury capsule procedures trainer as he shows how the first U.S. astronaut will ride through space during a demonstration at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Research Center in Langley Field, Va.![John Glenn 50th: in a spacesuit]()
Jan. 27, 1962: Astronaut John Glenn stands on the 11th deck of the service tower after his orbital attempt was postponed at Cape Canaveral, Fla. Reflected in his chest mirror is the spacecraft from which he has just emerged.![John Glenn 50th: With Kennedy]()
Feb. 23, 1962: Astronaut John Glenn, left, and President John F. Kennedy, center, inspect the Friendship 7 Mercury capsule which Glenn rode in orbit. At right is Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson. Kennedy presented the Distinguished Service Medal to Glenn at Cape Canaveral, Fla.![John Glenn 50th: Blastoff]()
Feb. 20, 1962: The Atlas rocket carrying the Friendship 7 Mercury spacecraft launches from Cape Canaveral, Fla., piloted by Col. John Glenn Jr. - the first American to orbit the earth. Glenn orbited three times around the globe at 17,400 miles an hour.![John Glenn 50th: Mercury Astronauts]()
This 1961 file photo shows the original seven Mercury astronauts in their silver spacesuits. First row, from left are Walter Schirra Jr., Donald Slayton, John Glenn and Scott Carpenter. In the back row are Alan Shepard, Jr., Virgil Grissom and Gordon Cooper.![John Glenn 50th: Entering Friendship Capsule]()
Feb. 20, 1962: Astronaut John Glenn climbs into the Friendship 7 space capsule atop an Atlas rocket at Cape Canaveral, Fla. for the flight which made him the first American to orbit the earth.![John Glenn 50th: With rocket model]()
Feb. 8, 1963: Astronaut John Glenn sits with models of the Mercury spaceship atop its launch rocket and a lunar module, representing the past and the future of space exploration as he talks about the first anniversary of his historic flight.![John Glenn 50th: 50 years later]()
Jan. 25, 2012: Sen. John Glenn speaks during an interview at his office in Columbus, Ohio. Glenn was the first American to orbit Earth, piloting Friendship 7 around the planet three times in 1962. Glenn, as a U.S. senator at age 77, also became the oldest person in space by orbiting Earth with six astronauts aboard shuttle Discovery in 1998.![John Glenn 50th: in spacesuit]()
Feb. 20, 1962: Astronaut John Glenn during his space flight in the Friendship 7 Mercury spacecraft, weightless and traveling at 17,500 mph. The image was made by an automatic sequence motion picture camera.![John Glenn in cockpit]()
Glenn in the cockpit of a T-106![John Glenn suits up]()
Glenn is suited up at Cape Canaveral during MA-6 activities![Glenn biosensor]()
Glenn has biosensor attached to body during training![Glenn and JFK]()
President Kennedy after presenting John Glenn with NASA Service Award![Glenn balance exam]()
Glenn tests his balance with special glasses![Glenn insertion practice]()
Astronaut John Glenn practices insertion into Mercury spacecraft![Glenn looking at globe]()
Glenn looks into a globe in the Aeromedical LaboratoryRemember when? John Glenn's first spaceflight, 50 years later
On Feb. 20, 1962, John Glenn made the United States' first orbital spaceflight, zipping around our planet three times in his Friendship 7 capsule before splashing down safely in the Atlantic Ocean.
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- Remember when? John Glenn's first spaceflight, 50 years later
