On February 20, 1962, Glenn flew the  Friendship 7  mission and became the first American to orbit the Earth... John Herschel Glenn Jr.  (July 18, 1921 – December 8, 2016) was an American  aviator ,  engineer ,  astronaut , and  United States Senator  from  Ohio . He was one of the " Mercury Seven " group of military  test pilots  selected in 1959 by  NASA  to become America'...