John Glenn to return to space

Glenn

January 15, 1998
Web posted at: 1:22 p.m. EST (1822 GMT)

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- U.S. Sen. John Glenn will be a passenger on an October space shuttle science mission, senior Clinton administration officials told CNN Thursday. NASA plans to officially announce the decision on Friday.

Glenn was the first American to orbit the Earth, in 1962.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration has been evaluating whether to accept the 76-year-old astronaut-turned-senator's offer to become the oldest man in space.

A technician adjusts Glenn's gear the day of his 1962 launch

Daniel Goldin, the agency's administrator, has said he was seriously considering authorizing using Glenn as an in-flight subject for tests that might improve earthbound research on the human aging process.

"There has to be enough science behind this that it can't be ridiculed as a stunt," John Logsdon, director of the Space Policy Institute at George Washington University, said before the decision was disclosed.

The Ohio Democrat has been in the Senate since 1975 and plans to retire at the end of this year.

Glenn exercises daily, lifts weights, pilots his own plane and even set a 1996 speed record in his twin-engine Beechcraft Baron.

Correspondent John Holliman and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Related stories:

• John Glenn, 75, wants to be oldest person to orbit Earth - June 21, 1997

Related sites:

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• Senator John Glenn Web Site
• US Senate - John Glenn
• NASA Homepage
• Life Magazine: Archive interview with Glenn about his role in The Space program
• Life Magazine cover - February 2, 1962

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