Gene Cernan the last man on the moon dies at age 82. Gene was a former astronaut, a navy pilot and one of the veterans of NASA's Gemini program. He was the second American to walk in space. He was an Apollo astronaut and flew to the moon twice. Cernan was the last man on the moon. NASA announced Gene Cernan's death on their web page.
After his retirement from NASA, Cernan became a passionate advocate in space exploration. He was an authority and was often quoted in print. He was also a respected witness in many Capitol Hill hearings where he testified before committees regarding NASA's budget and other issues regarding space.
Gene was a known political conservative and he also authored a well-received book about the final moon mission by the astronaut. He aptly named his book The Last Man on The Moon. He also starred in an award winning documentary with the same title.
Eugene A. Cernan was born in Chicago on March 14, 1934. He was commissioned in the Navy ROTC program at Purdue University. In 1956, he earned a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering. He was stationed at Miramar Naval Air Station in California after earning his wings. He subsequently earned a master's degree in aeronautical engineering from the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey California. Cernan logged more than 5,000 hours of flying time and completed more than 200 carrier landings. He was one of the 14 astronauts selected by NASA in the third group as reported by CBS News.
Gene Cernan was the pilot of Gemini 9. The flight was a three-day voyage with command pilot Tom Stafford. On the flight, Cernan spent more than two hours outside of the spacecraft and became the second American to walk in space. He later recalled the walk calling it the spacewalk from hell. During the space walk, Cernan lost around 13 pounds because he sweated too much. His visor glossed over with water and he could barely see. He barely got back into the spacecraft. The space agency was forced to restructure and re-plan the spacewalk to correct errors. It was a very risky undertaking for the astronaut as reported in Los Angeles Times.
