Edgar Mitchell
Astronaut Mitchell Dies Exactly 45 Years After His Moon Walk
“Astronaut Edgar D. Mitchell died yesterday. Coincidentally, on 5 Feb. 1971, Mitchell, lunar module pilot for the Apollo 14 lunar landing mission, stands by the deployed U.S. flag on the lunar surface during the early moments of the first extravehicular activity of the mission.”
Apollo 14 astronaut Edgar Mitchell, 85, dies in West Palm Beach , Palm Beach Post
“Astronaut Edgar D. Mitchell, who was part of the Apollo 14 space crew that flew to the moon in 1971, died late Thursday in West Palm Beach, according to his family. Mitchell, 85, lived in suburban Lake Worth and died at a local hospice at about 10 p.m. Thursday, his daughter, former West Palm Beach City Commissioner Kimberly Mitchell told The Palm Beach Post.”
NASA Administrator Remembers Apollo-Era Astronaut Edgar Mitchell
“He believed in exploration, having been drawn to NASA by President Kennedy’s call to send humans to the moon. He is one of the pioneers in space exploration on whose shoulders we now stand.”
He was the last surviving member of Apollo 14, the return to flight mission after Apollo 13.
How sad it is watching the Apollo generation of astronauts passing and still no one has returned to the Moon.
The Apollo generation were true space pioneers, will we ever see their likes again? RIP Edgar Mitchell, back with the crew of Apollo 14.
RIP Edgar Mitchell and Godspeed Apollo 14.
The crew of Apollo 14 are now all gone beyond the infinite, Godspeed the crew of Apollo 14! There are only 7 of the 12 Moon walkers left now and as time moves onward it will obviously continue to dwindle, it is doubtful any will still be alive to see a manned return to the Moon.
I know at least one more Moonwalker is rather unwell these days. It wont be long I fear before we are mourning another :'(
It will be a sad day when — if — there is no living person who has set foot on the Moon.
While I wish long lives to the remaining seven, realistically I agree that there’s a good chance that sad day will arrive. But it’s not quite certain. They are healthy men and if any live into their mid-90s, that allows until around 2030 for a new landing to happen while the torch could be passed in person, so to speak. A Chinese landing by then is plausible. Not guarranteed by any means, but plausible.
For personal connections I’ve been in a a large auditorium where Buzz Aldrin spoke. But I kick myself for missing the chance to see Dave Scott give a small seminar on Apollo 15 science to the geology dept at the institution I was then at — was brand new and hadn’t started checking other dept’s calendars yet. Doh.
A great American. He will be missed.
Only NPR has reported (briefly) on Ed Mitchell’s passing, I have not seen any mention on ABC or NBC news or on CNN. It seems that only movie stars and athletes are deserving of mention in the mainstream media when they pass on. What does that say about our values as a society?
The story made it to the front page of the BBC web site.
It’s also interesting to note the low number of comments here compared to those on some political posts, rather sad really.
The low comment count is due no doubt to despair.
Sadness, not despair.
Paucity of comments due to no one using Mr. Mitchell’s passing as a convenient hook upon which to hang some goofball political harangue which then sets off a long chain of “Sez you” and “So’s your Old Man” ripostes.
Yeah?? Sez you! ;-P
NBC did just mention him on tonight’s broadcast (Saturday), one day late.
I will miss people like Dr Mitchell terribly. And don’t read the comments sections on many news websites; it’s depressing – the idiot conspiracy sheep are already hard at work denigrating his memory and the achievements of Apollo. I wish the cancerous hoax memes would just die…
Astronaut hero Ed Mitchell stuck the landing at the very end!
Feb 6, 1971 – 04:18am: Apollo 14 landed at Fra Mauro
Feb 6, 1971 – 09:56am: Ed walks on the moon
Feb 5, 1971 – 10:00pm: Ed passes away less than 12 hours from the exact 45 year anniversary he landed/walked on the moon!
All times EST
This sucks… 🙁
I’d like to think that he is free now, to go wherever he wants in the universe.
I respect Mitchell as an astronaut and thank him for his performance of duty, but… he was famous for decades as a serious flake and nutcase. He devoted his life to zany pseudoscience craziness (including his organization testing mind-control chocolate). He makes even Robert Bigelow look rational!
http://www.livescience.com/…
http://garvarn.blogspot.com…
http://blogs.discovermagazi…
http://doubtfulnews.com/201…
http://noetic.org/
Why do I seem so annoyed with him parlaying his influence into promoting the Army of the Night?
Because I stand with Isaac Asimov:
“I stand four-square for reason, and object to what seems to me to be irrationality, whatever the source.
If you are on my side in this, I must warn you that the army of the night has the advantage of overwhelming numbers, and, by its very nature, is immune to reason, so that it is entirely unlikely that you and I can win out.
We will always remain a tiny and probably hopeless minority, but let us never tire of presenting our view, and of fighting the good fight for the right.”
Of course, Mitchell was not alone in astronaut crankness. They include, among others, Jim Irwin of Apollo 15, a fervent creationist who went on expeditions to find Noah’s Ark, or Gene Cernan, who was a wacky Obama Birther.
I wish you fair winds and following seas Dr. Mitchell. Thank you for your service.