Neil Armstrong R.I.P 1930-2012

[JB80]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-19381098

US astronaut Neil Armstrong, the first man to set foot on the Moon, has died at the age of 82, US media report.
Earlier this month he had surgery to relieve blocked coronary arteries.
He walked on the Moon on 20 July 1969, famously describing the event as "one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind".
Last November Armstrong, along with three other astronauts, received the Congressional Gold Medal, the highest US civilian award.
He was the commander of the Apollo 11 spacecraft. He and fellow astronaut Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin spent nearly three hours walking on the moon.
A statement from Armstrong's family says he died following complications resulting from his heart surgery.
Armstrong took his first flight aged six with his father, and formed a lifelong passion for flying.
He flew Navy fighter jets during the Korean War in the 1950s, before joining the US space programme in 1962.

Very sad news.

[Omaroo]

My life's hero has gone and I'm deeply saddened. Dignified to the last. RIP Cmdr Armstrong.

[supernova1965]

I just saw this when I woke up really is an end of an era now

[mozzie]

will be sadly missed....to go where not many have ever gone what a privilege

[goober]

RIP. One of my heroes.

[cybereye]

Very sad news. His endeavours inspired a generation and his achievement will always be remembered.

Mario

[mental4astro]

:(

words fail me today.

[norm]

One of the greatest heroes of all time. Dignified and humbled until his death. Shunned the limelight and media......

His destiny was always in flight and started at a young age....he had a remarkble career.

R.I.P NEIL ARMSTRONG

Norm

[Jeffkop]

That first lunar landing was brave stuff .. just getting in those rockets is pretty brave. He and the others were in every respect true pioneers .. IF things go wrong up there your options are pretty limited .. I always knew that I would see the end of the man on moon in my lifetime .. there is a void none the less.

I remember vividly that day we all sat around a black n white tele in the school hall watching a man walk on the moon .. none of us understood the meaning of his words though. What a loss but oh what a memory.

[lacad01]

Very sad indeed, a hero who inspired many with his quiet get on with it attitude. R.I.P

[GrahamL]

A life lived well ,,, rip

[iceman]

Sad news :( RIP Armstrong.

[Hans Tucker]

I hope the US gives this reluctant hero a send off that celebrates and honours his contribution to mankind, but given the nature of the man it will be a low key event without any fuss.

R.I.P Neil Armstrong

[DavidU]

Sad news.They don't build them like that anymore. A true gutsy gentleman.
What he (they) did can never be repeated.
Rest in peace.

[strongmanmike]

End of an era...I bet few at the time of Apollo 11 would have thought we wouldn't have returned to the moon or gone onto Mars before Neil's death over 40 years later :sadeyes:

Hopefully he got to see Curiosty land before he left us :thumbsup:

Mike

[Liz]

Yes, very sad news indeed .. RIP Neil Armstrong.:sadeyes:
Reckon i will watch 'Apollo 13' tonight.

[Lee]

'Humanity has gained a legend'
- Republican House Speaker John Boehner

[DavidTrap]

Very sad news. Before my time, but I've certainly enjoyed reading about the Apollo missions - what an amazing time. Nations just don't do anything like that any more.

DT

[acropolite]

RIP Neil Armstrong, sad news indeed. I still remember watching those first steps as though it was yesterday.

[kustard]

Truly a sad day :(

[Ric]

RIP Neil

You are responsible for some of the greatest childhood memories I have.

A very sad day

[sheeny]

Sad news.

...but what I life he had!

Al.

[AstralTraveller]

Shocked and saddened. One of the all time greats. :sad::sad:

[bkm2304]

Mr Class. Mr Cool. Mr wise. All wrapped up in the epitome of a modern explorer. RIP Neil.

[spacezebra]

With this news comes great sadness. A true gentleman and epic explorer, he will always be remembered.

[Mick]

Rest in Peace Neil

[Deeno]

An extraordinary man who lived an extraordinary life....
An entire planet who stopped to watch him create the most important point in human history, will mark his passing

[spacezebra]

I think ill also watch "In the shadow of the Moon".




Cheers Petra

[Groboz]

:(

[Zhou]

Neil Armstrong was an absolute hero and inspiration. May his legacy live on forever.

[wavelandscott]

RIP Cmdr Armstrong...you helped inspire the world and will be missed but never forgotten.

[astroron]

An inspirational Human Being has passed away.
Farewell Neil Armstrong, You will be sorely missed.

[alan meehan]

Very sad indeed what a inspiration he made on so many lives
RIP Neil Armstrong

[PeterM]

RIP Neil Armstrong.

[Astro_Bot]

A sad day indeed. He, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins were heroes to a generation. The world won't ever feel quite the same. RIP.

[Waxing_Gibbous]

Few of humanity will ever get the chance to leave such a legacy.
Let's hope we get another chance to build on his work.

[jjjnettie]

I'm deeply saddened. :( :(

[Peter Ward]

These words of McGee seem appropriate...


Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of earth
And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;
Sunward I've climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
Of sun-split clouds - and done a hundred things
You have not dreamed of - wheeled and soared and swung
High in the sunlit silence. Ho'ring there,
I've chased the shouting wind along, and flung
My eager craft through the footless halls of air.
Up, up the long, delirious burning blue
I've topped the windswept heights with easy grace
Where never lark, or even eagle flew.
And, while with silent, lifting mind I've trod
The high untrespassed sanctity of space,
Put out my hand, and touched the face of God.

:sadeyes: RIP Neil.

[asimov]

RIP Neil:(

[Paul Haese]

One of the primary reasons I am into astronomy was watching the Apollo program and landings. All brave men. A brave man and well remembered throughout history.

[venus]

Truly the bravest of the brave....RIP Neil Armstrong!

[h0ughy]

he is taking the other step for mankind - RIP

[Saturn%5]

A very sad day.

[brian nordstrom]

:sadeyes: Sad loss to the human race , RIP .
Brian.

[04Stefan07]

RIP Neil.

[Octane]

There's only a few things which bring tears to my eyes, above them all is seeing the footage of Neil climbing down the ladder, and uttering those words. It gets me every time without fail.

The sheer enormity, bravery, courage, and the willingness to do what no other man had done before, with the technological resources of the time, in my mind leads me to believe that what he and his crew accomplished was the greatest moment of triumph for man throughout all of human history.

You will never be forgotten.

RIP, Commander Neil Armstrong.

H

[astro_nutt]

I remember watching the Apollo 11 launch from the Forth grade classroom and then to watch the Moonwalk live a few days later....not a sound as we all saw Commander Neil Armstrong step down onto the Lunar surface and utter those imortal words...To witness such an awesome and historical event goes beyond words....we then said a prayer for their safe return.
A sad loss for humanity...
RIP Neil Armstrong..

[mithrandir]

Like astro_nutt, I watched the moon landing from the class room - Year 11 rather than 4th grade. The fascination it engendered in me with space has never left.

Armstrong’s family, announcing his death in a written statement.

What more can you say? RIP Neil.

[Larryp]

R.I.P.Neil Armstrong-not only a brave pioneer, but a great human being

[Forgey]

RIP Neil, another star above looking down on us.

[Stardrifter_WA]

RIP Neil. And end of an era, but what an amazing life he had.

[matt]

RIP Neil. A few words from Buzz http://buzzaldrin.com/buzz-aldrins-official-statement-on-the-passing-of-neil-armstrong/

And one of my favourite quotes attributed to Neil: "I am, and ever will be, a white-socks, pocket-protector, nerdy engineer, born under the second law of thermodynamics..."

[icytailmark]

:(

[Rick Petrie]

A legend in his and our lifetime. A sad day indeed to see him go. History will always remember him as the first. May you rest in peace. :(

[xstream]

RIP Commander Armstrong, an inspiration to us all! :sadeyes:

[asimov]

Well I gave the big guy a wink..Hope he enjoys my photo:)

[peter andre]

I am very saddened by Neil's passing.
He is and will always be my Hero. Commander Armstrong I will salute you tonight looking up to our friendly Moon.
RIP Neil

[Graeme Bluestar]

The death of this true American hero - (a word which has been very much overused and cheapened these days) marked the start of a very sad day for me. Like many others I remember my primary school class being led into the school library to watch a very grainy image on the one and only TV we had. The inspiration of the US space program was to a large extent responsible for my lifelong interest in astronomy.
I wonder how many others share a deeper regret with this news - as a teenager I, perhaps along with Neil himself, believed we would next see man walk on Mars. Now sadly I have abandoned the hope I will see this in my lifetime.

[NJB]

A sad day. I remember going home from grade 6 at Toowoomba East to watch on a b&w tv at a friend's place. We were the last back to school because we just kept watching, whereas most returned to school after the landing itself.

Neil Armstrong was a true hero and inspiration, and my memories of him stepping down ladder and saying those words, "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind" linger in my mind, along with the images of him and Buzz Aldrin bouncing on the moon.

R.I.P. Neil Armstrong.

[Russ59]

I can only repeat many of the thoughts preceding me on the passing Neil. As tragic and as shocking this news is to us all, we know in our hearts that our heroes of the space age will not live forever. I'd imagine Neil would be slightly embarrassed yet humbled at all the tributes and accolades bestowed upon him at this time.

The sky, and in particular the Moon, becomes even more of a special place as each of our space pioneers pass on.

R.I.P. Neil Armstrong.

[Nico13]

It was great to see those first steps on the moon and even better to relive those moments in the recent interviews and feel the mans emotions.
One who will be sadly missed by many.

[Domol]

he will be remembered for eons .....everytime we lookup at the moon

[big_dav_2001]

Farewell to a great man who showed a world in turmoil that anything can be achieved with just one small step.

The world has lost one of the last great heroes, may he rest in peace

Davin

[Hans Tucker]

NASA tribute gallery.

http://www.nasa.gov/topics/people/galleries/armstrong.html

[Mariner]

A well earned rest for one of the (my) true super heroes of our time.

[Jaybee]

Very sad news. I still remember watching his historic step on TV..RIP

[bartman]

Very Sad news indeed....
Rest in Peace Neil.
Bart

[M54]

Looking up at the Moon today make me think of the momentous times we lived through.

R.I.P Neil Armstrong.

[Zhou]

We need people like Neil Armstrong more than ever in our apathetic times. We, as a society, need to be inspired to explore and discover.

[mental4astro]

That Saturday night I was with my friend Peter sketching the Moon. I dedicated the sketch I did that night to Neil (http://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/showthread.php?t=67296). I guess its now my little link to the great man.

[joeallen]

Certainly a sad day as I watched that night the walk on the moon. There will only be 1 First Man. However there are many gods around. A humble man who always considered aeronautical engineering his first love.

As a footnote, had it not been for the Apollo 1 fire, Gus Grissom would have been the First Man. Gus was my true inspiration to take great interest in astronautics. Gus and Neil had much in common.

[thebonz]

Pivotal moment in my time
Kind regards to family and friends