Certain synergies

I'm forever scribbling down date trivia - often linked to my interest in space exploration, though not always. Today, I've turned up the slightly linked facts that it's John Glenn's birthday, and the 41st anniversary of the launch of Gemini 10.

Now John Glenn's something of a hero of mine: the first American to orbit the earth in his 'Friendship 7' Mercury craft and then the oldest astronaut when he flew on the Shuttle some 36 years later.

John Young was Gemini 10's commander and unlike Glenn who left after Mercury and entered politics, Young hung around at NASA long enough to fly two Apollo mission and the first and ninth Shuttle missions.

Glenn is 86 today while Young only finally retired from NASA in 2004.

Of course, both space events today are far overshadowed by the 89th birthday of another of my heroes - salutations Nelson Mandela!