Member-only story

Does Anyone Recall the Words of the 2nd Man on the Moon?

Wes O'Donnell
3 min readJul 17, 2019

--

By now we are no doubt caught up in the much-deserved hype surrounding the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon expedition, happening this week.

Technology writers aren’t immune from this week’s moon euphoria, dare I say “lunacy,” either. I recently purchased at auction a 1mm x 1mm piece of the original kapton foil from the Apollo 11 command module.

Growing up in the late 1970s and 80s, I was raised in a world where humans had already set foot on a different celestial body. I can only imagine what it must have been like to watch it unfold live on television, John F. Kennedy’s moonshot realized.

And while Neil Armstrong may have been the first man on the moon, speaking the now-famous words, “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind” as he stepped off Eagle’s footpad, fellow astronaut Buzz Aldrin made a number of significant contributions as well.

Buzz Aldrin: Problem Solver

Buzz Aldrin on the Moon. Courtesy NASA

First, while Armstrong deftly piloted the lunar lander around some boulders, Aldrin continued to call out navigation data as Eagle made its descent. In the final seconds, Aldrin confirmed the indicator light showing that one of the probes from Eagle’s footpads was in contact with the surface.

After landing, the hatch door wouldn’t open. The astronauts needed to depressurize the lander so that the module’s inner space matched the vacuum outside. If they tried to force the door, they risked breaking the handle, either locking them inside or breaking the door open. Eventually, Aldrin was able to delicately work the seal in a way that allowed enough air to escape so the hatch could open.

Aldrin recalled his exit 19 minutes after Armstrong touched the surface in an interview with Reuters. Aldrin states, “I then got in position to come down … came down the ladder, and jumped off, being careful not to lock the door behind me.” Good call… Locking oneself out on the moon’s surface would have been hilarious if it weren’t so tragic.

Then came Buzz Aldrin’s first words on the moon: “Beautiful view. Magnificent desolation.”

When Esquire Magazine asked comedian Bob Hope what advice he had for the first words that the astronauts should say, he suggested…

--

--

Wes O'Donnell
Wes O'Donnell

Written by Wes O'Donnell

US Army & US Air Force Veteran | Global Security Writer | Intel Forecaster | Law Student | TEDx Speaker | Pro Democracy | Pro Human | Hates Authoritarians

No responses yet

Write a response