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John Glenn, first US astronaut to orbit Earth, dies aged 95
December 8, 2016
John Glenn, a former astronaut and US senator for almost quarter of a century, has died in Ohio aged 95. Glenn died on Thursday afternoon at the James cancer hospital in Columbus, according to Hank Wilson of the John Glenn School of Public Affairs. Ohio governor John Kasich also confirmed the news on Twitter. An Ohio State University spokesman had announced on Wednesday that Glenn had been admitted to the hospital more than a week earlier. However, his illness was not disclosed and the spokesman had cautioned that it might not be cancer. Glenn became a national hero in 1962 when he became the first American to orbit the Earth, one year after the Soviet Union had sent their own man into orbit, Yuri Gagarin. Glenn was the third US astronaut in space and the first American in orbit, circling the Earth three times. He received a distinguished service medal from then-president John F Kennedy upon his return and was greeted by millions for a ticker-tape parade in New York City.
“It still seems so vivid to me,” Glenn said in a 2012 interview with the Associated Press on the 50th anniversary of the flight. “I still can sort of pseudo-feel some of those same sensations I had back in those days during launch and all.” Condolences came from politicians across the aisle, celebrities, Nasa and more, reflecting a deep and widespread reverence for Glenn. President-elect Donald Trump called Glenn a hero. “To me he was a great American hero,” he told pool reporters on Thursday, adding that he had met him twice. In a statement, president Barack Obama said the nation had lost an icon in Glenn. “With John’s passing, our nation has lost an icon and Michelle and I have lost a friend,” the statement said. “The last of America’s first astronauts has left us, but propelled by their example we know that our future here on Earth compels us to keep reaching for the heavens. On behalf of a grateful nation, Godspeed, John Glenn.”
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SOURCE = The Guardian
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John Glenn, First American To Orbit The Earth, Dies At 95
December 8, 2016
The first American to orbit the Earth has died. John Glenn was the last surviving member of the original Mercury astronauts. He would later have a long political career as a U.S. senator, but that didn’t stop his pioneering ways. Glenn made history a second time in 1998, when he flew aboard the shuttle Discovery to become the oldest person to fly in space. Glenn was 95 when he died; he had been hospitalized in an Ohio State University medical center in Columbus since last week. Glenn had been battling health issues since a stroke a few years ago. His death Thursday was confirmed by Hank Wilson, communications director of the John Glenn College of Public Affairs at the Ohio State University.
President Obama said that Glenn’s trailblazing showed “with courage and a spirit of discovery there’s no limit to the heights we can reach together.” The president said, “John always had the right stuff, inspiring generations of scientists, engineers and astronauts. … On behalf of a grateful nation, Godspeed, John Glenn.” NASA Administrator Charles Bolden said, “Senator Glenn’s legacy is one of risk and accomplishment, of history created and duty to country carried out under great pressure with the whole world watching. The entire NASA Family will be forever grateful for his outstanding service, commitment and friendship.”
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SOURCE = NPR
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‘Godspeed, John Glenn’: Public Hails Hero of Space, Politics
December 9, 2016
Tributes poured in for former astronaut and U.S. Sen. John Glenn, who died Thursday at age 95. Politicians, astronauts, educators and others called him a hero, with many mentioning the phrase that first sent him into orbit: “Godspeed, John Glenn.”
Here’s a look of some of the reactions:
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“When John Glenn blasted off from Cape Canaveral atop an Atlas rocket in 1962, he lifted the hopes of a nation. And when his Friendship 7 spacecraft splashed down a few hours later, the first American to orbit the Earth reminded us that with courage and a spirit of discovery there’s no limit to the heights we can reach together. … The last of America’s first astronauts has left us, but propelled by their example we know that our future here on Earth compels us to keep reaching for the heavens. On behalf of a grateful nation, Godspeed, John Glenn.” — President Barack Obama
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“Today we lost a great pioneer of air and space in John Glenn. He was a hero and inspired generations of future explorers. He will be missed.” — President-elect Donald Trump, on Twitter
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“By his inspirational leadership spearheading our space program, John helped push back the horizon of discovery.” — Former President George H.W. Bush, on Twitter
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‘He excelled in every one of his roles—decorated Marine, pioneer astronaut, accomplished and admired senator, loving husband and father. He was brave, bright, determined, and profoundly humble.” Former President Bill Clinton and Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
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“With the news today I’m saddened again to hear that we have lost the pioneer of space flight for the United States, second only to Yuri Gagarin, and he will always go down in history as certainly one of the most influential officers in the Marine Corps and of course as one of the original Mercury 7 astronauts.” — Former astronaut Buzz Aldrin, the second man to walk on the moon
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“Glenn’s extraordinary courage, intellect, patriotism and humanity were the hallmarks of a life of greatness. His missions have helped make possible everything our space program has since achieved and the human missions to an asteroid and Mars that we are striving toward now.” — NASA Administrator Charles Bolden
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“The Corps lost a legend today. Col. John Glenn — an astronaut, a senator, a Marine — died at the age of 95. Semper Fi, Sir.” — U.S. Marine Corps, on Twitter
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“On top of paving the way for the rest of us, he was also a first-class gentleman and an unabashed patriot.” — U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., who also flew in space
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“You look at John Glenn and his is really a life of service and we don’t see enough of that. He is an honest-to-God hero in all kinds of ways.” — Roger Launius, National Air and Space Museum associate director
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SOURCE = ABC News
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Quotes from John Glenn: ‘Zero-G and I feel fine.’
December 9, 2016
A sampling of quotes from John Glenn:
“We are placed here with certain talents and capabilities. It is up to each of us to use those talents and capabilities as best you can. If you do that, I think there is a power greater than any of us that will place the opportunities in our way, and if we use our talents properly, we will be living the kind of life we should live.” — At NASA news conference in 1959 to introduce the Mercury 7 astronauts.
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“Zero-G and I feel fine.” — While in orbit in 1962.
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SOURCE = The Washington Post
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Buzz Aldrin pays tribute to ‘world icon’ John Glenn (VIDEO)
December 9, 2016
WELLINGTON, Dec 9 — Moonwalker Buzz Aldrin paid tribute today to pioneer astronaut John Glenn, describing the first American to orbit the Earth as a world icon. Glenn, who died in Ohio yesterday aged 95, was “one of the most influential officers” in the US Marine Corps, Aldrin said from his hospital bed in New Zealand where he is recovering from a health scare on a trip to the South Pole. “I feel fortunate to be recovering from my own illness, but saddened that we lost another space pioneer and world icon,” said Aldrin, 86, who has been told he can only return to the United States when congestion on his lungs clears.
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SOURCE = MalayMail Online
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‘We lost a good man today’: Chris Hadfield on the death of John Glenn
December 8, 2016
Col. Chris Hadfield — Canada’s most recognizable former astronaut — says the death of his idol and colleague John Glenn is tragic. “He was absolutely one of the inspiring figures that dictated the life that I chose to follow,” Hadfield told CBC Calgary News at 6 on Thursday, after news of Glenn’s passing surfaced earlier in the day. “He was one of my heroes as a kid, but I was lucky enough to get to know one of my heroes later in life. He came back and flew in the shuttle in the late 90s when he was 77. I got to know John and his wife Annie. They have been married 73 years. John was one of the great Americans and I don’t say that lightly. A life of service, a really respectable man, just a class act, supremely competent and a humble guy to talk to,” he explained.
“We lost a very good man today.” Hadfield has just released his third book. It’s a children’s book looking at the distinction between fear and actual danger, The Darkest Dark. “How do you deal with fear? Everybody is afraid, how do you find your way through your own fear to do the things that you are dreaming about,” Hadfield told The Homestretch earlier in the day. “It is a question everybody faces everyday but especially so for young people.”
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SOURCE = CBC News
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First US astronaut to orbit Earth John Glenn dies aged 95
December 8, 2016
The last survivor of the original Mercury 7 astronauts died at the James Cancer Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, where he had been treated for more than a week. Glenn was the third US astronaut in space and the first of them to get into orbit. He circled the Earth three times in 1962. The Soviet Union leaped ahead in space exploration by putting the Sputnik 1 satellite in orbit in 1957, and then launched the first man in space, cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, but when Glenn became the first American to orbit the Earth, he was immediately propelled to national hero status. Glenn then spent 24 years as a Democrat from Ohio in the Senate – and made a failed run for president in 1984. It was his long political career which enabled him to return to space in the shuttle Discovery aged 77 in 1998, a cosmic victory lap that he relished and turned into a teachable moment about growing old.
He got to move around aboard the shuttle for far longer – nine days compared with just under five hours in 1962 – as well as sleep and experiment with bubbles in weightlessness. He holds the record for the oldest person in space. He is survived by his wife Anna, whom he married in 1943 after the pair met as toddlers. He bought her a diamond engagement ring in 1942 for 125 US dollars and it was never replaced. They had two children, Carolyn and John David. Writing in 2012, he said: “I’ve been very fortunate to have a lot of great experiences in my life and I’m thankful for them.” As tributes poured in to Glenn, many mentioned the phrase that first sent him into orbit: “Godspeed, John Glenn.”
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SOURCE = Independent (Ireland)
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