Glenn became a national hero as the first American to orbit Earth.
The Friendship 7 capsule blasted into space atop an Atlas rocket from Cape Canaveral on Feb. 20, 1962, and Glenn circled Earth three times before splashing down in the Atlantic. His flight lasted four hours and 56 minutes.
Glenn was the last surviving member of America's original astronauts, the 'Mercury 7,' including Scott Carpenter, Gordon Cooper, Gus Grissom, Wally Schirra, Alan Shepard and Deke Slayton.
'Cruise passengers arriving to Grand Turk have the ability to learn more about the early NASA space exploration program and unique connection Grand Turk has had, all the while paying homage to the heroes and pioneers including John Glenn,' said David Candib, vp development and operations, Global Port & Destination Development Group, Carnival Corp. & plc.
Carnival opened 'Splashdown Grand Turk' in 2011. The free, 3,500-square-foot exhibit features replicas related to the Mercury space program, including a scaled 20-foot-tall Atlas rocket and a full-size, three-dimensional replica of Glenn in spacesuit along with a detailed replica of the Friendship 7 capsule.
Storyboards depict the accomplishments of the NASA space program and detail the differences in space equipment of yesterday and today, while offering an overview of the current space program and future plans.
In 2012, Carnival worked with NASA to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the orbits and, as part of the celebrations, the local government renamed the airport road John Glenn Drive.
Many hundreds of thousands of passengers visit Grand Turk by cruise ship each year.
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