John Glenn, a pioneering former US astronaut, has died

John Glenn, the first American to orbit the Eart, a former US senator, and a war hero, has died after being hospitalized for more than a week, according to the Columbus Dispatch.

Glenn, 95, was at the James Cancer Hospital at Ohio State University but did not necessarily have cancer, university spokesman Hank Wilson told Reuters in a telephone interview on Wednesday.

"When you're 95, it's always considered serious," said Wilson, who did not have further details about Glenn's condition at the time.

Glenn had a knee replacement operation in 2011 and underwent heart surgery in 2014.

Glenn was the first American to orbit the Earth, doing so three times on Feb. 20, 1962. He also became the oldest astronaut ever, returning to space at the age of 77 on October 29, 1998.

Born in Cambridge, Ohio, Glenn served in the U.S. Senate as a moderate Democrat from Ohio from 1974 to 1999.

NASA quickly offered its condolences via Twitter, signing off with the latin phrase Ad astra, which means "to the stars":

We're updating this post as we learn more details.

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