1930-

American Astronaut, Test Pilot, and Engineer

Neil Armstrong enjoyed a distinguished career as a research test pilot before becoming a NASA astronaut in 1962. After leaving NASA he served on two Presidential commissions that helped to define the agency's future. He is best known, however, for leaving the first human footprints on another world.

Armstrong was born on a farm near Wapakoneta, Ohio, on August 5, 1930. In love with flying from boyhood, he wanted to study aeronautical engineering in college. A U. S. Navy scholarship gave him the money he needed, but a call to active duty interrupted his studies at Purdue University. Armstrong flew jet fighters for the navy from 1949 to 1952, flying 78 combat missions from the aircraft carrier Essex during the Korean War. After leaving the service he returned to his studies, receiving a B.S. in aeronautical engineering in 1955.

Now both an engineer...