The night sky over Perth when the city turned on its lights for John Glenn

On 20 February 1962, John Glenn became the first American to orbit the Earth, in the Friendship 7 capsule. In Western Australia, his first pass overhead came late at night.

People in Perth and nearby towns switched on their house lights, car headlights and street lights so Glenn could see them from space. He did, and Perth became known as the City of Light.

Sky chart of the night sky above Perth, Western Australia at 11:42 pm on 20 February 1962
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The sky above Perth, Western Australia on 20 February 1962

The sky was fully dark. There was a waning gibbous Moon in the sky, 99% lit. It stood 43° above the horizon in the north-east, in the constellation Leo. No planet was bright enough and high enough to see.

Local time
11:42 pm
Time in UTC
20 February 1962 at 3:42 pm UTC
Sun
Night
Sun position
46° below the horizon
Moon phase
waning gibbous Moon
Moon lit
99%
Moon position
43° above the horizon in the north-east

What happened that night

As he passed over Western Australia, Glenn radioed that he could see the lights very well, and asked the ground crew to thank everybody for turning them on.

A NASA tracking station at Muchea, north of Perth, followed the flight and talked with Glenn as he crossed the coast.

Why people remember it

The lights were a small, friendly act that people around the world heard about. In 1998, when Glenn flew in space again, on the Space Shuttle Discovery, Perth lit up for him a second time.

A star map of this night makes a gift for anyone from Perth, a space fan, or someone who remembers switching on the porch light.

Questions about this night

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