John Glenn: First American to Orbit the Earth Dies at 95

John Glenn was an American astronaut and U.S. senator. Born on July 18, 1921, in Cambridge, Ohio, he was a Marine Corps fighter pilot in World War II and Korea.

In 1962 he became the first American to orbit the Earth, aboard Friendship 7. He served as a Democratic U.S. senator from Ohio from 1974 to 1999. In 1998, at age 77, he flew aboard the Space Shuttle Discovery, the oldest person in space at that time.

He received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2012. Glenn died in Columbus, Ohio, on December 8, 2016, at age 95.

Achievements: Presidential Medal of Freedom, Congressional Space Medal of Honor.

Birth: July 18, 1921 - Cambridge, Ohio.

Profession: Astronaut and politician.

Interesting Facts: He was the oldest person to fly in space at the time.