Canadian astronauts salute John Glenn

OTTAWA – Canadian astronauts are paying tribute to American space hero John Glenn, who died Thursday at the age of 95.

Retired Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield tweeted that Glenn was a great American who was “an inspiration to us all.”

Hadfield, the first Canadian to walk in space, also tweeted “Goodbye, John Glenn. Godspeed,” a reference to the famous sendoff that Glenn received as he blasted off in 1962 to become the first the first U.S. astronaut to orbit the Earth.

Another Canadian astronaut, Marc Garneau, called Glenn “larger than life.”

Garneau, who is now the federal Transport Minister, also noted that Glenn made a return to space at the age of 77 in 1998 aboard the space shuttle Discovery.

The Canadian Space Agency tweeted its condolences to Glenn’s family.

Glenn died at a Columbus, Ohio, hospital where he was hospitalized for more than a week.