Perth, Australia, Again Salutes Orbiting Glenn -- He Gets New Salute From Perth, Australia

SPACE CENTER, Houston - John Glenn spotted the glowing city of Perth, Australia, from orbit today and thanked residents for turning on their lights just as they did during his first flight 36 years ago.

"We've got a real good view," Glenn told Mission Control as space shuttle Discovery soared 350 miles above the continent. "It's been a long time ago I looked at the same thing from a little lower altitude, but it looks beautiful up here and you can pass that along to the people of Perth."

History's oldest space traveler said the city looked even better than it did back in 1962. "They've really got them lit up tonight here," he said.

After awakening to the gravelly voice of Louis Armstrong singing "What a Wonderful World," the seven-member crew of Discovery worked through a busy schedule this morning, including a series of medical experiments assigned to Glenn.

This afternoon, some of the astronauts set loose a small experimental communication satellite for the Navy.

Amid all of the work, the astronauts paused long enough today to search for the lights of Perth, on Australia's western coast.

On Feb. 20, 1962, Perth turned on every light in town as a salute to Glenn, who was then on his historic mission as the first American in orbit. Glenn reported from his Mercury capsule at the time that "the lights show up very well."

As Perth residents repeated the salute today, the astronauts photographed the city from orbit, and Glenn promised to send city officials a copy. They had Perth in view for five minutes.

Discovery was launched yesterday from the Kennedy Space Center for the start of a mission that will concentrate on science.

Glenn faced a full day of work on his primary job in orbit: doing 10 experiments that study the effects of weightlessness on the human body and how it might relate to aging on Earth.

He started before bedtime yesterday by swallowing a dime-sized capsule that took his body temperature as he slept.

The senator said he was having a good time in orbit and was thrilled by the view from 340 miles above the Earth.

"Boy, enjoying the show," he told Mission Control as Discovery soared over Hawaii yesterday. "I don't know what happens on down the line, but today is beautiful and great."

Glenn also was quick to put to rest any fears about how his 77-year-old body would re-adapt to microgravity.

"Zero-g and I feel fine," he said, reprising a phrase from his historic flight on Feb. 20, 1962, when he became the first American to orbit Earth.

Two hours later, Glenn marked one milestone in a flight that's full of them - the moment Glenn surpassed his previous flight time of four hours, 55 minutes and 23 seconds.

"I'm now doubled on my space time," Glenn exulted, "and building up every second."

"Let the record show that John has a smile on his face and it goes from one ear to the other one, and we haven't been able to remove it yet," shuttle commander Curtis Brown Jr. said.

Discovery lifted away from the Kennedy Space Center at 11:19 a.m. yesterday, flying into a crystal sky after a near-perfect countdown.

About a quarter million people visted the area to watch the space shuttle streak from view. Among the spectators were many astronauts from the earlier days of NASA.

Scott Carpenter, Glenn's backup on the 1962 Mercury flight, banged his fists on the arms of his chair and gave a thumbs-up as his pal rode into orbit across a picture-perfect sky.

Carpenter watched the liftoff with the two other surviving Mercury astronauts, Wally Schirra and Gordon Cooper. He sent his best wishes to the crew and reprised his immortal benediction from 1962: "Good luck, have a safe flight and . . . once again, Godspeed, John Glenn."

Two minor problems - a spurious alarm and a private plane that strayed too close - delayed the launch 19 1/2 minutes.

NASA officials later announced that an insulation blanket on the side of the shuttle orbiter was missing. It was not considered a serious problem, but was to be examined by a remote camera in the cargo bay.

The crew also noted a leak in a new water system that removes iodine from the shuttle's drinking water. Flight controllers instructed the crew to use a proven, older system.

Links to Web sites that are tracking events during the shuttle flight are available on The Seattle Times' Web site: www.seattletimes.com