Gene Cernan, the Last Man to Leave Footprints on the Moon, Is Dead at 82

From Esquire

NASA reports that Gene Cernan, the last man to walk on the moon, died on Monday while surrounded by family. He was 82.

Cernan was the second American to walk in space and the last to leave his footprints on the moon. A captain in the Navy, Cernan flew three times in space and twice to the moon. NASA selected Cernan as one of 14 astronauts in 1963; three years later, he piloted the Gemini 9 mission. In 1969, he served as the lunar module pilot of Apollo 10.

Cernan was also the commander of Apollo 17 in 1972, which was the final lunar mission and one of the last Apollo flights.

"I keep telling Neil Armstrong that we painted that white line in the sky all the way to the Moon down to 47,000 feet so he wouldn't get lost, and all he had to do was land," Cernan told NASA in 2007. "Made it sort of easy for him."

Though his words aren't as well known as Neil Armstrong's, his goodbye to the moon is unforgettable:

You can read NASA's moving tribute in full here. Rest in peace and godspeed, Gene Cernan.

(H/T NASA)

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