Who is armstrong neil

Navy scholarship. In , as part of his scholarship, Armstrong trained as a pilot in the Navy. He began seeing active service in the Korean War two years later and went on to fly 78 combat missions during this military conflict. For this government agency, he worked in a number of different capacities, including serving as a test pilot and an engineer.

He tested many high-speed aircraft, including the X, which could reach a top speed of 4, miles per hour. He and fellow astronaut David Scott were launched into the earth's orbit on March 16, While in orbit, they were able to briefly dock their space capsule with the Gemini Agena target vehicle. This was the first time two vehicles had successfully docked in space. During this maneuver, however, they experienced some problems and had to cut their mission short.

They landed in the Pacific Ocean nearly 11 hours after the mission's start and were later rescued by the U. Armstrong faced an even bigger challenge in Along with Michael Collins and Edwin E. The trio was launched into space on July 16, Serving as the mission's commander, Armstrong piloted the Lunar Module to the moon's surface on July 20, , with Aldrin aboard.

Collins remained on the Command Module. At p. He said, "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind," as he made his famous first step on the moon.

For about two and a half hours, Armstrong and Aldrin collected samples and conducted experiments. They also took photographs, including their own footprints. Neil Armstrong inside the Lunar Module on July 20, The crew and the craft were picked up by the U. Obama also sought to encourage private companies to get involved in the space travel business and to move forward with more unmanned space missions. Taking this new decision, Armstrong said, would cost the United States its leadership position in space exploration.

If the leadership we have acquired through our investment is simply allowed to fade away, other nations will surely step in where we have faltered. Armstrong underwent a heart bypass operation in August He is survived by his second wife Carol in Indian Hill, Ohio, and his two sons from his first marriage.

Honor his example of service, accomplishment and modesty, and the next time you walk outside on a clear night and see the moon smiling down at you, think of Neil Armstrong and give him a wink. President Obama was among those offering their condolences to his family and sharing their remembrances of the late space pioneer.

W Page 1. Astronaut Program In his personal life, Armstrong started to settle down. Moon Landing Armstrong faced an even bigger challenge in They also took photographs, including their own footprints. Later Contributions Armstrong remained with NASA, serving as deputy associate administrator for aeronautics until He and his first wife divorced in Mike Timlin. American astronaut Michael Collins was part of the historic Apollo 11 mission, remaining in the command module as Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin became the first humans to walk on the moon.

Since he stayed behind to pilot the command module as Aldrin and Armstrong made On July 20, , just eight years after President John F. Following the Apollo 11 historic July 20, , moonwalk, Aldrin and Neil Apollo 13 was the seventh manned mission in the Apollo Space program and was supposed to be the third lunar landing mission, but the three astronauts aboard never reached the moon.

Instead the crew and ground control team scrambled through a hair-raising George Armstrong Custer was a U. He gained further fame for his post-war exploits against Native Americans in the West. The non-stop campaign of testing and launches was also a race against time—specifically to honor slain president John F. Live TV. This Day In History. History Vault. Military Service Astronaut, military pilot, educator. Astronaut Program In his personal life, Armstrong started to settle down.

Moon Landing Armstrong faced an even bigger challenge in Recommended for you. Nixon Calls Apollo 11 Astronauts. One Small Step Apollo What the Moon Smells Like. Complications from the surgery resulted in his death on Aug.

Tributes poured in from many public figures, including President Barack Obama, Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, then-NASA administrator Charles Bolden, Apollo 11 crewmates Aldrin and Collins, and various space representatives in the public, private and nonprofit spheres.

They set out to show the world that the American spirit can see beyond what seems unimaginable — that with enough drive and ingenuity, anything is possible. A private memorial service for Armstrong was held Aug. Two weeks later, a publicly televised memorial service was held at the National Cathedral in Washington, D. Armstrong was buried at sea Sept. Armstrong's family was on board when the ship left port in Mayport, Florida, and they released his ashes somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean. Obama ordered flags around the United States to fly at half-staff on the day of the funeral.

In , the Smithsonian Institution revealed that Armstrong had kept aside a cloth bag full of small parts from the lunar module Eagle, which lay undiscovered for decades until his widow, Carol, found it. While Armstrong made no mention of this bag in decades of interviews, the bag was discussed a few times during the mission. It is unknown how Armstrong ultimately gained possession of the bag, but it was common during the Apollo years for astronauts to retain souvenirs of their flights. A month after Armstrong's death, Obama made legal a bill to allow Mercury, Gemini and Apollo astronauts to retain legal title to these mementos.

Former "Mythbusters" host Adam Savage subsequently created a carry bag based on the design of Armstrong's "purse"; the design was actually used in several Apollo missions before and after Apollo In a BBC documentary, Armstrong's brother, Dean, said that he knew of the famous first words on the moon several months before Apollo 11 touched down.

Dean reported that Armstrong passed him a handwritten note as the brothers played a late-night game of Risk, according to British newspaper the Telegraph.

However, Dean's remarks contradicted many statements by Armstrong himself, who said that the words didn't come to him until he arrived on the moon.

The other Apollo 11 astronauts have also backed up Armstrong's assertions. On Oct. The movie was embroiled in political controversy because the filmmakers decided not to include a scene where Armstrong plants an American flag on the moon's surface, despite the fact that Armstrong did so in reality. Marco Rubio, a Republican from Florida, tweeted, "This is total lunacy.