File:Mercury Spacecraft “Friendship 7” (51102280650).jpg

This is the actual capsule in which John Glenn orbited of the Earth on 20th February 1962, becoming the first American to do so. The Mercury Capsules were built by McDonnell and were carried to space by Atlas LV-3B launch vehicles built by Convair. This flight was referred to as ‘Mercury-Atlas 6 (MA-6)’ although it is more commonly known as ‘Friendship 7’. Three orbits were completed. It is seen on display in the ‘Boeing Milestones of Flight Hall’ (Gallery 100/200). National Air and Space Museum, Washington DC. 11th May 2015 14th March 2018

The following information is from the museum website:-

“In this historic capsule, John H. Glenn Jr. became the first American to orbit the Earth. Glenn's flight was the third manned mission of Project Mercury, following two suborbital flights by astronauts in 1961. Glenn's three-orbit mission on February 20, 1962, was a sterling success, as he overcame problems with the automatic control system that would have ended an unmanned flight. But re-entry was tense, as a faulty telemetry signal from the spacecraft indicated that the heat shield might be loose. Mission Control instructed Glenn not to jettison the retrorocket package after firing in order to better hold the heat shield in place. Glenn re-entered successfully and splashed down in the Atlantic 4 hours, 55 minutes and 23 seconds after launch.