Neil Armstrong, first man on the moon, passes away (+video)
Astronaut Neil Armstrong, the first human to set foot on the moon, is remembered by his family as a 'reluctant American hero.'
Astronaut Neil A. Armstrong, who in 1969 took a "small step" to become the first human to set foot on the moon, has died at the age of 82.
Armstrong, who described his first steps on the lunar surface as a "giant leap for all mankind," died on Saturday (Aug. 25). He had undergone coronary bypass surgery on Aug. 7, two days after his 82nd birthday. Armstrong's death was confirmed in a statement by his family.
"Neil Armstrong has passed away following complications resulting from cardiovascular procedures," his family wrote on the website neilarmstronginfo.com. "Neil was our loving husband, father, grandfather, brother and friend."
First man
Selected with NASA's second group of astronauts in 1962, Neil Armstrong first flew in space as the command pilot of the Gemini 8 mission in March 1966. On the sixth crewed flight of NASA's two-seater capsule, Armstrong and pilot David Scott achieved the first docking of two spacecraft in orbit, linking up with an unmanned Agena target vehicle. [Photos: Neil Armstrong Remembered]
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