Neil Armstrong

Neil Alden Armstrong (born August 5, 1930) is a former American test pilot and astronaut who was the first man to walk on the Moon.

Follow-on career

Armstrong joined the faculty of the University of Cincinnati in 1971, and remained there as a professor of aerospace engineering until 1979. He was named vice chairman of the presidential commission that investigated the explosion of the Challenger space shuttle.

Related Topics:
University of Cincinnati - 1971 - Aerospace engineering - 1979 - Challenger space shuttle

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Armstrong served as chairman of AIL Technologies, an electronics and avionics manufacturer, from 1989 until he retired in 2002. He has kept a low profile during his retirement, rarely giving interviews or making public appearances. He lives in a suburb outside of Cincinnati.

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In 2005, Armstrong said that a human voyage to Mars will be easier than the lunar challenge of the 1960s: "...I suspect that even though the various questions are difficult and many, they are not as difficult and many as those we faced when we started the Apollo (space program) in 1961." Armstrong also recalled his initial concerns about the Apollo 11 mission. He had believed there was only a 50 percent chance of landing on the moon. "I was elated, ecstatic and extremely surprised that we were successful," he said.http://www.cnn.com/2005/TECH/space/09/06/armstrong.mars.ap/

Related Topics:
Human voyage - Mars - Lunar challenge

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