Neil Armstrong Has Sadly Passed Away...

Neil Armstrong was born on the 5^th of August 1930. He was an American astronaut, test pilot, aerospace engineer, university professor and United States Naval Aviator. Neil was the first ever human to set foot upon the Moon. Neil graduated from Purdue University and the University of Southern California.

 

On the 25^th of August 2012 Neil Armstrong sadly lost his life, aged 82, due to complications following heart surgery earlier this month.

NASA chief Charles Bolden recalled Armstrong's grace and humility in a statement on Saturday: "As long as there are history books, Neil Armstrong will be included in them, remembered for taking humankind's first small step on a world beyond our own." Also the third astronaut on Armstrong's mission in 1969, Michael Collins, told NASA this on Saturday: "He was the best, and I will miss him terribly."

A deeply saddened, President Barack Obama, hailed Armstrong as one of the nation’s greatest ever heroes, for having inspired a generation to reach for the stars. Here is what he had to say: ‘‘When he and his fellow crew members lifted off aboard Apollo 11 in 1969, they carried with them the aspirations of an entire nation."

‘‘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. And when Neil stepped foot on the surface of the moon for the first time, he delivered a moment of human achievement that will never be forgotten.’’

‘‘Today, Neil’s spirit of discovery lives on in all the men and women who have devoted their lives to exploring the unknown - including those who are ensuring that we reach higher and go further in space.

‘‘That legacy will endure - sparked by a man who taught us the enormous power of one small step.’’

Former British astronaut Tom Jones told Sky News this: "Mr Armstrong was one of the astronauts that was my hero when I was growing up and I watched his initial landing on the moon in 1969 with incredible interest. I wanted to do exactly what Neil, and Buzz, and Mike Collins were doing that time. I hoped that one day I would have the chance to participate in the space program. He really was an inspiration to an entire generation of people."

This is the second death in a month of one of NASA's most history-making astronauts. Sally Ride, the first American woman to travel into space, died of pancreatic cancer on July the 23^rd, aged 61.