Space Foundation Press Releases
Space Foundation Comments on Passing of Mercury Seven Astronaut John Glenn
Written by: developer
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (Dec. 8, 2016) – The Space Foundation today commented on the death of Col. John H. Glenn, Jr., USMC (Ret.), 95, the last of the Mercury Seven astronauts, military test pilots selected by NASA in 1959 to become America’s first astronauts.
“U.S. success in space was built on the courage and determination of men like John Glenn, who dedicated his life to serving his country and proving what humans could accomplish in space,” said Kevin Cook, Space Foundation – Vice President, Marketing & Communications.
In 1962, Glenn was the first American to orbit the Earth, and the fifth human in space. He was also the oldest person to go into space when, in 1998 at the age of 77, he returned to space as a Payload Specialist on Discovery’s STS-95 mission.
An Ohio native, Glenn was a U.S. Marine Corps aviator, engineer and United States Senator. He was inducted into the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame in 1990.
About the Space Foundation
Founded in 1983, the Space Foundation is the foremost advocate for all sectors of space, and is a global, nonprofit leader in space awareness activities, educational programs and major industry events, including the annual Space Symposium, in support of its mission “to advance space-related endeavors to inspire, enable and propel humanity.” Space Foundation World Headquarters in Colorado Springs, Colo., USA, has a public Discovery Center, including El Pomar Space Gallery, Northrop Grumman Science Center featuring Science On a Sphere® and the Lockheed Martin Space Education Center. The Space Foundation has a Washington, D.C., office and field representatives in Houston and the Florida Space Coast. It publishes The Space Report: The Authoritative Guide to Global Space Activity, and through its Space CertificationTM and Space Technology Hall of Fame® programs, recognizes space-based innovations that have been adapted to improve life on Earth. Visit both of our websites – www.SpaceFoundation.org and DiscoverSpace.org – and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Twitter, Google+, Flickr and YouTube, and read our e-newsletter Space Watch.
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