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American astronaut and lunar explorer (born 1930)

Buzz Aldrin (AWL-drin; born Edwin Eugene Aldrin Jr.; January 20, 1930) is an American former astronaut, engineer and fighter pilot.

He made three spacewalks as pilot of the 1966 Gemini 12 mission, and was the Lunar Module Eagle pilot on the 1969 Apollo 11 mission.

55 years ago today, #Apollo11 touched down on the Moon, and Neil Armstrong & Buzz Aldrin became household names.

Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin standing on the surface of the Moon near the leg of the Lunar Module "Eagle" with a reflection of astronaut Neil Armstrong.

ONE SMALL STEP: On this day in , astronauts Neil Armstrong and Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin became the first men to walk on the moon.

Astronaut and Lunar Module pilot Buzz Aldrin is pictured during the Apollo 11 extravehicular activity on the moon.

With the touring and speeches scheduled to continue into the following year, Aldrin began to feel like a publicity pawn for NASA.

He was the second person to walk on the Moon after mission commander Neil Armstrong. Following the death of Michael Collins in 2021, he is the last surviving Apollo 11 crew member.

Born in Glen Ridge, New Jersey, Aldrin graduated third in the class of 1951 from the United States Military Academy at West Point with a degree in mechanical engineering.

He was commissioned into the United States Air Force and served as a jet fighter pilot during the Korean War. He flew 66 combat missions and shot down two MiG-15 aircraft.

After earning a Doctor of Science degree in astronautics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Aldrin was selected