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Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr. enters his Mercury capsule as he prepares for launch of the Mercury-Atlas rocket.

NASA

NASA
Washington, DC, United States

Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr. enters his Mercury capsule, "Friendship 7," as he prepares for launch of the Mercury-Atlas rocket. On February 20, 1962, Glenn lifted off into space aboard his Mercury Atlas 6 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.

Photo credit: NASA

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  • Title: Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr. enters his Mercury capsule as he prepares for launch of the Mercury-Atlas rocket.
  • Location: Cape Canaveral, FL
  • Owner: KSC
  • Album: cbabir
  • About Title: To help you find images you’re searching for, previously untitled images have been labelled automatically based on their description
NASA

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