Monday, August 27, 2012

RIP Neil Armstrong (1930-2012)

Among the images that symbolize the accomplishments of manned spaceflight is this one of Neil Armstrong on the surface of the Moon on July 20, 1969. I was born just a couple of months after that historic event, so, to me, growing up, a lunar landing was never the stuff of science fiction. Rather, I thought it to be a small, first step toward a coming giant leap for mankind. Back then, I fully expected that, by the time the year 2000 (or, perhaps, 2001) rolled around, we'd have a moon base and be exploring the rest of the solar system, not with robot probes but with human beings like the courageous Neil Armstrong, who died last Saturday at the age of 82. And while I fully understand why that childhood dream has not come to pass, I can't deny that I'm still disappointed. Here's hoping that, before I die, I might once again marvel at the heroism of men walking on the surface of a world other than our own.

6 comments:

  1. That's not Neil Armstrong, it's Buzz Aldrin. Because Neil was holding the camera during EVA, most of the pictures taken that day were of Buzz. Which is why people are using this image: http://www.nasa.gov/topics/people/features/armstrong_obit.html

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  2. Planet Earth is blue
    And there's nothing I can do
    And the stars look very different today

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  3. This poster -- bit.ly/Ns6ox4 -- also of Buzz Aldrin, hung on my bedroom wall for years. I watched the grainy live feed of Armstrong stepping off the ladder onto the moon with my face hanging about a foot in front of the TV. His words were completely lost in static, so I had no idea what he said until Walter Cronkite repeated it. But it was still the most amazing transmission ever received, and probably will remain so until we finally get a message from some other star.

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  4. That is good long life with absolutely marvelous achievements he had. I can not be disappointed in space exploration at moment because of Curiosity landing.

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