| JOHNGLENN | The first US astronaut to orbit the earth, in 1962, circling it thrice (4,5) |
| SHEPARD | Alan, the first US astronaut to travel in space (7) |
| GLENN | John -, first US astronaut to orbit the earth |
| PASHTO | Afghan tree: see other side of leaf, circling it |
| VIRGIL | TV's Thunderbirds craft were piloted by Scott, Alan, Gordon, John and ..., all named after the first US astronauts in space |
| JOHN | TV's Thunderbirds craft were piloted by Virgil, Scott, Alan, Gordon and ..., all named after the first US astronauts in space |
| DIPHTHONG | Swim, taking hot, minimal swimsuit? Mean each day to show it thrice (9) |
| ETCETERA | Yul Brynner regally said it thrice and so on (2,6) |
| LAIKA | He was a stray dog picked off the streets of Moscow and the first animal to orbit the Earth in the Soviet spacecraft Sputnik 2 in 1957. |
| SACREDCOW | Nickname of the first US presidential aircraft |
| ALONE | Who (John ___) orbited the Earth in 1962 and 1998? (5) |
| TYLER | In 1841, John ____ became the first US vice president to succeed to the presidency without election |
| SPUTNIK | Name for a series of space missions launched by the Soviet Union, the first of which launched the first man-made object to orbit the Earth |
| SPACEWALK | As per #26-Down... In 2001, Chris Hadfield became the first Canadian astronaut to perform this free-floating promenade way above the Earth |
| PEAKE | Author of a series of books set in the crumbling fictional castle Gormenghast; or, the first British ESA astronaut to visit the International Space Station (5) |
| BOBBYFISCHER | In 1972, who became the first US chess player to win the world championship? (5,7) |
| HARRISON | William Henry _, the first US president to die in office, in 1841 (8) |
| TIMPEAKE | The first British astronaut to visit the International Space Station with the European Space Agency (3,5) |
| TEDDYROOSEVELT | Informally, the first US president to win the Nobel peace prize |
| PEPSI | What was the first US consumer product sold in the Soviet Union? (5) |
