Buzz Aldrin (born January 20, 1930) is an American former astronaut and fighter pilot. As lunar module pilot on the Apollo 11 mission, he and Neil Armstrong were the first humans to land on the Moon. A graduate of West Point and MIT, where he earned a doctorate in astronautics, Aldrin served as an Air Force fighter pilot during the Korean War, flying 66 combat missions and shooting down two MiGs. He was selected as an astronaut with NASA's third group in 1963. His first spaceflight was in 1966 on Gemini 12, during which he spent over five hours outside the spacecraft. He set foot on the Moon on July 21, 1969 (UTC), nine minutes after Armstrong. He left NASA in 1971 and became commandant of the U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School. His autobiographies Return to Earth and Magnificent Desolation recount his struggles with depression and alcoholism. He developed the Aldrin cycler, a Mars spacecraft trajectory, and continues to advocate for space exploration, particularly a human mission to Mars.

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buzz_Aldrin

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1945:

World War II: Germany began the evacuation of at least 1.8 million people from East Prussia in anticipation of the advancing Soviet Red Army, an operation that took nearly two months to complete. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evacuation_of_East_Prussia

1968:

The Houston Cougars upset the UCLA Bruins in what became known as the "Game of the Century", ending the Bruins' 47-game winning streak, and establishing college basketball as a sports commodity on American television. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Game_of_the_Century_%28college_basketball%29

2018:

A group of Taliban gunmen attacked the Inter-Continental Hotel in Kabul, Afghanistan, sparking a 12-hour battle that left 42 people dead and more than 14 others injured. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2018_Inter-Continental_Hotel_Kabul_attack

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

acquit: 1. (transitive) To declare or find innocent or not guilty. 2. (transitive) To discharge (for example, a claim or debt); to clear off, to pay off; to fulfil. 3. (transitive) Followed by of (and formerly by from): to discharge, release, or set free from a burden, duty, liability, or obligation, or from an accusation or charge. 4. (reflexive) To bear or conduct oneself; to perform one's part. 5. (reflexive) To clear oneself. 6. (transitive, archaic) past participle of acquit. 7. (transitive, obsolete) To release, to rescue, to set free. 8. (transitive, obsolete, rare) To pay for; to atone for. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/acquit

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

Every single thing in the world that was made by anyone started with an idea. So to catch one that is powerful enough to fall in love with, it is one of the most beautiful experiences. It's like being jolted with electricity and knowledge at the same time.   --David Lynch https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/David_Lynch