Michael Collins, the ‘forgotten astronaut’ who actually stayed back on the command capsule that was instrumental for the landing of Apollo 11, the first manned mission to the moon, died aged 90 on Wednesday. He had died of cancer.
He was left all alone for 21 hours in the capsule as Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin went to the lunar surface to become the first men on the moon. He had lost contact with Houston until the two returned to the module in what could have been the most solitary 21 hours that any man could have ever known in the history of mankind. Collins had recounted his experiences in his autobiography titled, “Carrying the Fire”, saying, “I know that I would be a liar or a fool if I said that I have the best of the three Apollo 11 seats, but I can say with truth and equanimity that I am perfectly satisfied with the one I have.”
He was born in 1930, and was the same age as Aldrin and Armstrong. He served the US Army for a brief period as an Air Force test pilot, and was chosen right after the US’ urge to prove itself after the Cold War. His first trip was aboard the Gemini X, which docked successfully. His second, and final, spaceflight was the historic Apollo 11.
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