Armstrong, well-known as the commander of NASA's prolific Apollo 11 mission, during which he became the first human being to set foot on the lunar surface on 20th July, 1969.
He was born August 5, 1930, in Wapakoneta, Ohio. Neil became passionate about aviation since he took his first flight at age 6.
Being active in the Boy Scouts of America, he earned the Eagle Scout rank, the highest rank for a school student in this field. Eventually, Armstrong received his pilot license on his 16th birthday and later a naval air cadet in 1947.
After attending Purdue University, he received Bachelor of Science (BS) in aeronautical engineering in 1955. At this young age, he flew 78 combat missions in F9F-2 jet fighters during the Korean War. For this achievement, Neil received the Air Medal as well as two Gold Stars. Resuming his studies, he completed Master of Science in aerospace engineering from the University of Southern California. He also received several honorary doctorates from different universities.
After completion, he became a civilian research pilot for the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA). Then he got a chance to serve National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). He had the responsibility of testing different supersonic fighters and highly acclaimed X-15 rocket plane. Overall he gathered an experience of 1,100 on-flight hours.
Neil Armstrong, command pilot of Gemini 8, in association with David R. Scott completed the first manual space docking maneuver on March 16, 1966. After this successful docking experiment, Armstrong regained Gemini craft control and made an emergency splashdown in the Pacific Ocean.
Armstrong, Edwin E. Aldrin, Jr., and Michael Collins, started their journey towards moon in Apollo 11 vehicle on July 16, 1969. Exactly, four days later, on 20th July, "Eagle lunar landing module, guided manually by Armstrong, touched down on a plain near the southwestern edge of the Sea of Tranquillity (Mare Tranquillitatis). At 10:56 PM EDT on July 20, 1969, Armstrong stepped from the Eagle onto the Moon’s dusty surface with the words, “That’s one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind.” (In the excitement of the moment, Armstrong skipped the “a” in the statement that he had prepared.)" according to NASA website.
Armstrong and Edwin Aldrin came out of the module, and stayed on lunar surface for more than two hours. They deployed some scientific instruments, alongwith collecting lunar surface samples. They also took some photographs which are still famous among space lovers.
They stayed on lunar surface for 21 hours and 36 minutes. Then the astronauts lifted off to and begin the voyage back to Earth. The spacecraft made a splashdown in the Pacific on July 24.
After spending 18 days in quarantine to protect against possible microbial contamination from moon, they started their normal life.
While touring 21 nations, these three astronauts were praised for their significant contribution in space science.
During 1971 to 1979, he served as a professor of aerospace engineering at the University of Cincinnati (Ohio). Then he became the chairman and director of multiple companies, including Computing Technologies for Aviation during 1982 to 1992.
Armstrong also served on the National Commission on Space (NCOS), a panel resposible for making goals for the space program.
On this day, in 2012, Armstrong died at the age of 82 due to cardiovascular complications.
