Neil Armstrong
Neil Armstrong.
Neil Armstrong (1930–2012) was an astronaut and aeronautical engineer who was the first person to walk on the Moon. He was a United States Naval Aviator who served in the Korean War and later worked as a civilian test pilot for experimental aircraft. Armstrong joined the NASA Astronaut Corps in the second group, selected in 1962; he made his first spaceflight as command pilot of Gemini 8 in March 1966, becoming NASA's first civilian astronaut to fly in space. During this mission with pilot David Scott, he completed the first docking of two spacecraft. In July 1969, Armstrong and Apollo 11 Lunar Module pilot Buzz Aldrin performed the first crewed Moon landing, while Michael Collins remained in lunar orbit in the command module. Stepping onto the lunar surface, Armstrong said: "That's one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind." He was later awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the Congressional Space Medal of Honor and the Congressional Gold Medal.
Neil Armstrong (1930–2012) was an astronaut and aeronautical engineer who was the first person to walk on the Moon. He was a United States Naval Aviator who served in the Korean War and later worked as a civilian test pilot for experimental aircraft. Armstrong joined the NASA Astronaut Corps in the second group, selected in 1962; he made his first spaceflight as command pilot of Gemini 8 in March 1966, becoming NASA's first civilian astronaut to fly in space. During this mission with pilot David Scott, he completed the first docking of two spacecraft. In July 1969, Armstrong and Apollo 11 Lunar Module pilot Buzz Aldrin performed the first crewed Moon landing, while Michael Collins remained in lunar orbit in the command module. Stepping onto the lunar surface, Armstrong said: "That's one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind." He was later awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the Congressional Space Medal of Honor and the Congressional Gold Medal.