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Eugene Cernan, the last man to walk on the moon, died today. He was 82.
https://www.nasa.gov/astronautprofiles/cernan
Just for the record, of all those who walked on the moon, Buzz Aldrin, Alan Bean, Charles Duke, Harrison Schmitt, David Scott and John Young are still alive.
That is sad. That man tried so hard to get kids interested in Space Flight his whole life.
I read about him the other day. It's too bad the space program has gone the way it has. I remember how exciting each launch was, and how many of us kids of the time, followed each new blastoff and mission. However, I did notice that somewhere along the way, many people kind of lost interest in it all, and it just became commonplace. The only thing that piqued their interest was when something went wrong like Apollo 13. With all the advanced games and electronics that have captured the interest of the kids of today, I wonder how amazed they would be if there were still manned trips into space. I guess for many, it is no big deal any more, but for me, I'm still captivated by the technology and the brave people that travel into harms way.
Most of you misfits are about my age or just a little older. These guys were my childhood heros, especially Cernan who I very much remember watching on TV while sitting on the lap of my dad. And somewhere in the attic, is my beloved Gemini rocket.
Sure, Buzz Lightyear is cool. But these were REAL people, with balls like church bells. What do you do when flying combat missions over Vietnam just doesn't seem fun any longer? Become a Gemini astronaut.