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| Michael Collins. At an event to discuss the impact of the historic Apollo 11 mission. Photo of the National Press Club in Washington DC, the USA on April 15, 2019. Photo: AFP |
Man first set foot on the moon in 1989. 2019 marks the 50th anniversary of NASA's Apollo 11 mission. Less than two years later, Michael Collins, one of the members of Chandrajoy's expedition, is no more.
According to the AFP news agency, the family of Michael Collins said that the astronaut lost his fight against cancer on Wednesday. He was 90 years old at the time of his death.
In a statement on Michael Collins ’official account on Twitter, Collins’ family said, ‘Mike has always accepted life’s challenges with humility and elegance. He has similarly accepted the last challenge of his life. '
The final phase of NASA's Apollo 11 mission began with the launch of the manned spacecraft on July 17, 1989, from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, USA. Neil Armstrong, one of the three astronauts on the mission, made history by setting foot on the moon on July 20. Shortly afterward, Buzz Aldrin set foot on the moon as the second human. At that time, Michael Collins was orbiting the moon alone with the original spacecraft Command Module Columbia in orbit around the moon. The three astronauts returned to Earth on July 24 after spending eight days in space.
