Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr. dons his silver Mercury pressure suit in preparation for launch. On February 20, 1962 Glenn lifted off into space aboard his Mercury Atlas (MA-6) rocket and became the first American to orbit the Earth. After orbiting the Earth 3 times, Friendship 7 landed in the Atlantic Ocean 4 hours, 55 minutes and 23 seconds later, just East of Grand Turk Island in the Bahamas. Glenn and his capsule were recovered by the Navy Destroyer Noa, 21 minutes after splashdown. Image # : S64-36910 Date: February 20, 1962

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Size: 1481px × 2254px
Photo credit: © NC Collections / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

Keywords: 7, friendship, glenn, john, ma-6, mercury, project