Neil Armstrong

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jump to: navigation, search

This article is about the former American astronaut. For the former NFL player and coach, see Neill Armstrong. For the former NHL linesman, see Neil Armstrong (ice hockey).

This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (July 2010)

Neil Armstrong
USAF / NASA Astronaut
Status	Retired
Born	August 5, 1930 (1930-08-05) (age 80) Wapakoneta, Ohio, U.S.
Previous occupation	Naval aviator, Test pilot
Time in space	8 days, 14 hours, 12 minutes and 31 seconds
Selection	1957 MISS Group; 1960 Dyna-Soar; 1962 NASA Astronaut Group 2
Total EVA's	1
Total EVA time	2 hours 31 minutes
Missions	Gemini 8, Apollo 11
Mission insignia

Neil Alden Armstrong (born August 5, 1930) is an American aviator and a former astronaut, test pilot, aerospace engineer, university professor, and United States Naval Aviator. He was the first person to set foot on the Moon. His first spaceflight was aboard Gemini 8 in 1966, for which he was the command pilot, becoming one of the first U.S. civilians to fly in space (Joseph Albert Walker became the first US civilian in space aboard X-15 Flight 90 several years earlier).^[1][2] On this mission, he performed the first manned docking of two spacecraft together with pilot David Scott. Armstrong's second and last spaceflight was as mission commander of the Apollo 11 moon landing mission on July 20, 1969. On this mission, Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin descended to the lunar surface and spent 2½ hours exploring while Michael Collins remained in orbit in the Command Module. Armstrong is a recipient of the Congressional Space Medal of Honor.
Before becoming an astronaut, Armstrong was in the United States Navy and saw action in the Korean War. After the war, he served as a test pilot at the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) High-Speed Flight Station, now known as the Dryden Flight Research Center, where he flew over 900 flights in a variety of aircraft. As a research pilot, Armstrong served as project pilot on the F-100 Super Sabre A and C aircraft, F-101 Voodoo, and the Lockheed F-104A Starfighter. He also flew the Bell X-1B, Bell X-5, North American X-15, F-105 Thunderchief, F-106 Delta Dart, B-47 Stratojet, KC-135 Stratotanker and Paresev. He graduated from Purdue University and the University of Southern California.