90 years ago, on January 20, 1930, a baby boy joined the family of Edwin Eugene Aldrin Sr. and his wife, Marion Aldrin. Their boy, named Edwin Eugene Aldrin Jr., grew up in the town of Montclair, New Jersey alongside two older sisters, Madeleine and Fay Ann, the latter coining the nickname that would later become Edwin's legal first name, and a recognizable name to anyone interested in space: "Buzz."
Buzz Aldrin was a brilliant student and a model citizen throughout his early life, getting involved in Boy Scouts and high school football. He attended West Point after high school, and graduated in 1951 with a Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering. Graduating third in his class, he had his choice of assignments, and always wanting to follow in his father's footsteps, he chose the United States Air Force in order to become a pilot. After a year of training, he was stationed near Seoul, South Korea during the Korean War, during which he engaged in 66 combat missions. After his tour ended, he pursued a masters degree in aeronautical engineering at MIT and later finished coursework to complete his doctorate, earning his Sc. D. in aeronautics in 1963.
His career as an astronaut began later in 1963 when he was accepted into NASA's Astronaut Group 3 as the first astronaut with a doctorate, earning him the nickname "Dr. Rendezvous," though the nickname wasn't always used endearingly. He worked on the Gemini program as a pilot and from November 11, 1966 to November 15, 1966, he completed a number of extravehicular activities onboard the Gemini 12 and Gemini Agena Target Vehicle.
Undoubtedly, the most famous of Buzz's exploits was during the 1969 manned Apollo 11 mission to the lunar surface; a surface which Buzz himself described famously as "magnificent desolation." For the roughly two hours that followed their first footsteps on the lunar surface, Buzz Aldrin and Neil Armstrong erected a flag, collected surface and core samples, and set up various other experiments as part of the first human excursion to the surface of a celestial body beside our own Earth. Those two hours are etched into the collective memory of all mankind, including the fact that Buzz Aldrin was the first human to urinate on the moon!
Bodily functions aside, the Apollo 11 mission was a landmark moment in human history and the men that took that trip are forever immortalized in the collective consciousness of humankind and regarded as heroes; people who's exploits paved the way for innumerable scientific dreams and innovations. Here's to you, Buzz Aldrin, have a happy and magnificent 90th birthday!
Buzz Aldrin was a brilliant student and a model citizen throughout his early life, getting involved in Boy Scouts and high school football. He attended West Point after high school, and graduated in 1951 with a Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering. Graduating third in his class, he had his choice of assignments, and always wanting to follow in his father's footsteps, he chose the United States Air Force in order to become a pilot. After a year of training, he was stationed near Seoul, South Korea during the Korean War, during which he engaged in 66 combat missions. After his tour ended, he pursued a masters degree in aeronautical engineering at MIT and later finished coursework to complete his doctorate, earning his Sc. D. in aeronautics in 1963.
His career as an astronaut began later in 1963 when he was accepted into NASA's Astronaut Group 3 as the first astronaut with a doctorate, earning him the nickname "Dr. Rendezvous," though the nickname wasn't always used endearingly. He worked on the Gemini program as a pilot and from November 11, 1966 to November 15, 1966, he completed a number of extravehicular activities onboard the Gemini 12 and Gemini Agena Target Vehicle.
Undoubtedly, the most famous of Buzz's exploits was during the 1969 manned Apollo 11 mission to the lunar surface; a surface which Buzz himself described famously as "magnificent desolation." For the roughly two hours that followed their first footsteps on the lunar surface, Buzz Aldrin and Neil Armstrong erected a flag, collected surface and core samples, and set up various other experiments as part of the first human excursion to the surface of a celestial body beside our own Earth. Those two hours are etched into the collective memory of all mankind, including the fact that Buzz Aldrin was the first human to urinate on the moon!
Bodily functions aside, the Apollo 11 mission was a landmark moment in human history and the men that took that trip are forever immortalized in the collective consciousness of humankind and regarded as heroes; people who's exploits paved the way for innumerable scientific dreams and innovations. Here's to you, Buzz Aldrin, have a happy and magnificent 90th birthday!
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