When the posigrade rockets fired and separated the capsule from the booster, the five-second rate-damping operation started two and a half seconds late.
This caused a substantial roll error as the capsule began its turnaround.
The automatic attitude control system took 38 seconds to place Friendship 7 into its proper orbital attitude.
The turnaround maneuver used 5.4 pounds (2.4 kg) of fuel from a total supply of 60.4 pounds (27.4 kg): 36 lb (16 kg) for automatic and 24.4 lb (11.1 kg) for manual control system.
The spacecraft then settled into orbital flight with a velocity of 17,544 miles per hour (28,234 km/h).

Friendship 7 began its first orbit with all systems go.
It crossed the Atlantic and passed over the Canary Islands.
Controllers there reported all capsule systems in perfect working order.
Looking at the African coastline, and later the interior over Kano, Nigeria, Glenn told the tracking station team that he could see a dust storm.
Kano flight communicators replied that the winds had been quite heavy for the past week.

Over Kano, Glenn took control of the spacecraft and started a major yaw adjustment.
He allowed the spacecraft to continue the yaw maneuver until it was facing into its flight path.
Glenn noticed that the attitude indicators disagreed with what he observed was the true spacecraft attitude.
Even with the incorrect instrument readouts, he was pleased to be facing forward instead of backward on his orbital path.

Over the Indian Ocean, Glenn observed his first sunset from orbit.
He described the moment of twilight as "beautiful".
The sky in space was very black, he said, with a thin band of blue along the horizon.
He said the sun set fast, but not as quickly as he had expected.
For five or six minutes there was a slow reduction in light intensity.
Brilliant orange and blue layers spread out 45 to 60 degrees on either side of the sun, tapering gradually toward the horizon.
Clouds prevented him from seeing a mortar flare fired by the Indian Ocean tracking ship as part of a pilot observation experiment.

Continuing his journey on the night side of Earth, nearing the Australian coastline, Glenn made star, weather, and landmark observations.
He looked for but failed to see the dim light phenomenon known as the zodiacal light; his eyes had insufficient time to adapt to the darkness.

The spacecraft came into radio range of Muchea, Australia.
At the Mercury Tracking Station there, Gordon Cooper was the capsule communicator.
Glenn reported that he felt fine and had no problems.
He saw a very bright light and what appeared to be the outline of a city.
Cooper said that he probably was looking at the lights of Perth and its satellite town of Rockingham.
This turned out to be correct; many people in Perth turned on their lights so as to be visible to Glenn as he passed over.
 "That sure was a short day," he excitedly told Cooper. "
That was about the shortest day I've ever run into."

The spacecraft moved across Australia and across the Pacific to Canton Island.
Glenn experienced a short 45 minute night and prepared the periscope for viewing his first sunrise from orbit.
As the sun rose over the island, he saw thousands of "little specks, brilliant specks, floating around outside the capsule"; he momentarily felt that the spacecraft was tumbling or that he was looking into a star field.
A quick hard look out of the spacecraft window corrected the illusion and Glenn was sure that the "fireflies", as he called them, were streaming past his spacecraft from ahead.
They seemed to flow by slowly but did not seem to be coming from any part of the spacecraft, and they disappeared as Friendship 7 moved into brighter sunlight.
It was later determined that they were probably small ice crystals venting from onboard spacecraft systems.

"I am in a big mass of some very small particles, they're brilliantly lit up like they're luminescent.
I never saw anything like it.
They round a little: they're coming by the capsule and they look like little stars.
A whole shower of them coming by.
They swirl around the capsule and go in front of
When the posigrade rockets fired and separated the capsule from the booster, the five-second rate-damping operation started two and a half seconds late. This caused a substantial roll error as the capsule began its turnaround. The automatic attitude control system took 38 seconds to place Friendship 7 into its proper orbital attitude. The turnaround maneuver used 5.4 pounds (2.4 kg) of fuel from a total supply of 60.4 pounds (27.4 kg): 36 lb (16 kg) for automatic and 24.4 lb (11.1 kg) for manual control system. The spacecraft then settled into orbital flight with a velocity of 17,544 miles per hour (28,234 km/h).
Friendship 7 began its first orbit with all systems go. It crossed the Atlantic and passed over the Canary Islands. Controllers there reported all capsule systems in perfect working order. Looking at the African coastline, and later the interior over Kano, Nigeria, Glenn told the tracking station team that he could see a dust storm. Kano flight communicators replied that the winds had been quite heavy for the past week.
Over Kano, Glenn took control of the spacecraft and started a major yaw adjustment. He allowed the spacecraft to continue the yaw maneuver until it was facing into its flight path. Glenn noticed that the attitude indicators disagreed with what he observed was the true spacecraft attitude. Even with the incorrect instrument readouts, he was pleased to be facing forward instead of backward on his orbital path.
Over the Indian Ocean, Glenn observed his first sunset from orbit. He described the moment of twilight as "beautiful". The sky in space was very black, he said, with a thin band of blue along the horizon. He said the sun set fast, but not as quickly as he had expected. For five or six minutes there was a slow reduction in light intensity. Brilliant orange and blue layers spread out 45 to 60 degrees on either side of the sun, tapering gradually toward the horizon. Clouds prevented him from seeing a mortar flare fired by the Indian Ocean tracking ship as part of a pilot observation experiment.
Continuing his journey on the night side of Earth, nearing the Australian coastline, Glenn made star, weather, and landmark observations. He looked for but failed to see the dim light phenomenon known as the zodiacal light; his eyes had insufficient time to adapt to the darkness.
The spacecraft came into radio range of Muchea, Australia. At the Mercury Tracking Station there, Gordon Cooper was the capsule communicator. Glenn reported that he felt fine and had no problems. He saw a very bright light and what appeared to be the outline of a city. Cooper said that he probably was looking at the lights of Perth and its satellite town of Rockingham. This turned out to be correct; many people in Perth turned on their lights so as to be visible to Glenn as he passed over.  "That sure was a short day," he excitedly told Cooper. "That was about the shortest day I've ever run into."
The spacecraft moved across Australia and across the Pacific to Canton Island. Glenn experienced a short 45 minute night and prepared the periscope for viewing his first sunrise from orbit. As the sun rose over the island, he saw thousands of "little specks, brilliant specks, floating around outside the capsule"; he momentarily felt that the spacecraft was tumbling or that he was looking into a star field. A quick hard look out of the spacecraft window corrected the illusion and Glenn was sure that the "fireflies", as he called them, were streaming past his spacecraft from ahead. They seemed to flow by slowly but did not seem to be coming from any part of the spacecraft, and they disappeared as Friendship 7 moved into brighter sunlight. It was later determined that they were probably small ice crystals venting from onboard spacecraft systems.
"I am in a big mass of some very small particles, they're brilliantly lit up like they're luminescent. I never saw anything like it. They round a little: they're coming by the capsule and they look like little stars. A whole shower of them coming by. They swirl around the capsule and go in front of
Mercury-Atlas 6