John Glenn: In 1962 he became the first American to orbit the earth Photo: Supplied
John Herschel Glenn wasn't the first man in space, he wasn't even the first American, but he did orbit the earth three times in February 1962 as one of the first seven Mercury Astronauts of NASA.
In October 1998, 36 years later, he returned to space as Payload Specialist on a space shuttle mission, becoming the oldest person to go into space at the age of 77.
