John Glenn, first American to orbit Earth dies at 95

John Glenn , a hero for the Americans died at the age of 95 years. His life sounds like a believe it or not saga of remarkable achievements. Born in Ohio, U.S.A, he learnt to fly aircraft early in his life and as a Marine Corps pilot, he served in both the World Wars and in the Korean war after which he broke the transcontinental flight speed record before being the first American to orbit the Earth in 1962 and, 36 years later at age 77 in 1998, became the oldest man in space as a member of the seven-astronaut crew of the shuttle Discovery.

He also became the Senator for Ohio and in 2012 was awarded the highest honour, the Presidential Medal for Freedom. He once admitted to being jealous of Buzz Aldrin and Neil Armstrong for landing on the moon. Perhaps that’s why, in 1998, as he prepared to retire from the Senate, he persuaded nasa to return him to space aboard the shuttle Discovery, becoming the oldest person ever to have escaped Earth’s gravity.

Circling Earth at more than seventeen thousand miles per hour in Friendship 7

With his passing, the nation has lost an icon, said President Obama. John Glenn is survived by his children and his wife of seven decades, Annie.