Apollo 11 astronaut Michael Collins, who was part of the crew that made the first moon landing, has died following a battle with cancer, his family announced Wednesday. He was 90 year old.
"He spent his final days peacefully, with his family by his side," reads a statement released by the Collins family. "Mike always faced the challenges of life with grace and humility, and faced this, his final challenge, in the same way. We will miss him terribly."
- Collins was born in Rome, but moved to Washington D.C. with his family and graduated from West Point. He was picked to join the astronaut program in 1963 and served as the command pilot for the Apollo mission, orbiting the moon while Buzz Aldrin and John Glenn walked on it.
- Has there been a moment in the last 25 years as big as the first moon landing?
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