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RUTH LAW
DAYTONA'S PIONEER AVIATOR
Edwin Eugene Aldrin, Jr.
1930 –
Lunar Excursion Module Pilot
Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin, Jr. was born in Montclair New
Jersey, attended West Point and graduated third in his
class with a B.S. in mechanical engineering. In 1963 he
received a Doctor of Science in Astronautics from MIT.
Serving in the Air Force with 66 combat missions in
Korea, "Buzz" was awarded the Distinguished Flying
Cross.
His nickname "Buzz" originated when his sister called
him "buzzer" while trying to say "brother."
"Buzz" Aldrin and Neil Armstrong descended to the
moon's surface via a Lunar Excursion Module (LEM), in
an area called the "Sea of Tranquility." Neil and "Buzz"
discussed the name for the landing site itself, discarding
the names Moon One, Base Camp, Moon Base, in favor of
"Tranquility Base."
As the Lunar Excursion Module touched the moon's
surface for the first time, Aldrin radioed the Houston,
Texas, command center, "Houston, Tranquility Base
here. The Eagle has landed."
Edwin Aldrin, the second man to walk on the moon,
planted the American Flag on its surface, later called the
sights he saw "magnificent desolation," and collected 46
pounds of moon rocks, 3.7 billion years old.
HER PLACE IN AVIATION HISTORY
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