Friendship 7

The words

1. Applesauce

   Glenn ate applesauce from a tube during Friendship 7. Eating in orbit was part of the mission’s investigation of how the human body functioned in weightlessness.

   NASA: Glenn’s flight and recovery (opens a new tab)

2. Fireflies

   At orbital sunrise, Glenn saw bright specks outside Friendship 7. The objects he called fireflies were ice particles traveling with the capsule and illuminated by sunlight.

   NASA: Glenn’s flight and recovery (opens a new tab)

3. Fly by Wire

   Control commands sent electrically.

   Glenn found fly-by-wire useful when Friendship 7’s automatic orientation control developed problems. It helped him keep the capsule pointed correctly during the flight.

   pp. 196–197, 429 · NASA history: Mercury control and tracking (opens a new tab)

4. Friendship

   Glenn named his Mercury spacecraft Friendship 7. It carried him on the Mercury-Atlas 6 mission, the first American orbital spaceflight.

   Did you know?

   Artist Cecilia “Cece” Bibby painted the Friendship 7 name on the capsule before launch, with Glenn watching the work.

   NASA: Glenn’s flight and recovery (opens a new tab)

5. Godspeed

   Scott Carpenter’s recorded send-off for Glenn was “Godspeed, John Glenn.” Glenn did not hear the words during his 1962 flight.

   Did you know?

   Carpenter’s wish was repeated on tape when Glenn returned to space aboard Discovery in 1998.

   Booth: Carpenter’s recorded send-off (opens a new tab) · NASA: Carpenter’s 1998 send-off (opens a new tab)

6. John Glenn

   On February 20, 1962, Glenn became the first American to orbit Earth. He returned to space aboard Discovery in 1998, 36 years after Friendship 7.

   Ohio State: Glenn and New Concord (opens a new tab)

7. Joint Session

   Glenn addressed Congress about Friendship 7 on February 26, 1962. House records classify the appearance as a joint meeting of the two houses.

   Photograph PA2012.04.0032 · House records: Glenn’s joint meeting (opens a new tab)

8. Landing Bag

   Mercury’s landing bag cushioned the capsule at splashdown. A faulty signal suggested premature deployment, raising concern that Glenn’s heat shield was no longer secured.

   pp. 429, 436 · NASA: Glenn’s flight and recovery (opens a new tab) · NASA history: Mercury control and tracking (opens a new tab)

9. Muchea

   At the Muchea tracking station in Western Australia, Gordon Cooper spoke with Glenn as Friendship 7 passed overhead. The station belonged to Mercury’s worldwide tracking network.

   Australian archives: Muchea station (opens a new tab) · NASA history: Mercury control and tracking (opens a new tab)

10. New Concord

    Glenn grew up in New Concord, Ohio, where his family moved when he was two. The town welcomed John and Annie home with a parade on March 3, 1962.

    Did you know?

    The Glenn family’s house was moved when U.S. Route 40 was widened in the early 1940s. It was relocated elsewhere in New Concord.

    Ohio State: Glenn and New Concord (opens a new tab)

11. Perth

    Perth residents turned on their lights in salute to Glenn’s 1962 flight. From orbit, he saw the bright area around the city.

    Western Australia: Perth’s lights (opens a new tab)

12. Retropack

    A pack of rockets used to slow the spacecraft.

    Controllers kept Friendship 7’s retropack attached for reentry because of the heat-shield warning. They hoped its straps would hold a loose shield in place.

    pp. 429, 431–432 · NASA history: Mercury control and tracking (opens a new tab)

13. Sunset

    As Friendship 7 crossed the Indian Ocean, Glenn watched the Sun set. He described orange and blue layers spreading along the horizon.

    p. 428 · NASA history: Mercury control and tracking (opens a new tab)

14. Three Orbits

    Friendship 7’s planned mission was three orbits. Glenn completed all three; the heat-shield warning did not cut short a seven-orbit flight.

    Smithsonian: the planned three orbits (opens a new tab)

15. USS Noa

    The destroyer USS Noa recovered Friendship 7 with Glenn still inside. Sailors lifted the capsule aboard, and Glenn later transferred by helicopter to the carrier USS Randolph.

    NASA: Glenn’s flight and recovery (opens a new tab)