On July 20, 1969, countless Americans and over half a billion viewers around the globe tuned in to watch the first man walk on the moon. The U.S. government spent a reported $25 billion ($150 billion today) on the Apollo program which would go on to inspire countless authors, scientists, and filmmakers for years to come and the face for it all was Neil Alden Armstrong.
It is with great sadness, that today we report that this historical figure has passed away at the age for 82 just weeks after undergoing heart surgery to relieve blocked coronary arteries. Complications following the surgery are said to be the cause of death. The time of passing was 2:45 p.m. at a hospital in Columbus Ohio on August 25, 2012. Hit the jump for the reason we and generations to come will remember Neil Armstrong.
“That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.”
For those of you curious, fellow moon walker Buzz Aldrin is still hanging in there at age 82 himself. He has been a bit more high profile in his post-NASA career and was most recently seen via a cameo in the third Transformers movie, Dark of the Moon. Aldrin also voiced a very minor character called The Stargazer in the video game Mass Effect 3 which hit store shelves back in March.