WASHINGTON: The last surviving member of the first NASA mission to ever broadcast live TV from orbit, US astronaut Walter Cunningham, has away at the age of 90. Apollo 7 was an 11-day manned mission that took place in 1968 to test the feasibility of space docking and rendezvous. However, the crew's broadcast was also honoured with an Emmy. It opened the door for Apollo 11's moon landing less than a year later.
Cunningham's passing was confirmed by Nasa, which noted that he "was vital to the success of our Moon landing programme." He passed away on Tuesday in a Houston hospital from natural causes "after a long and complete life," according to a family representative.
In a statement released by Nasa, the US space agency, the Cunningham family stated, "We would want to convey our tremendous pleasure in the life that he lived, and our heartfelt gratitude for the man that he was - a patriot, an explorer, pilot, astronaut, husband, brother, and father." Another great hero has left the earth and will be missed terribly.
Cunningham, who was raised in Creston, Iowa, eventually attended the University of California, Los Angeles, where he obtained a master's degree in physics. He was one of the three astronauts picked for the Apollo program's first manned spaceflight even though he was working as a civilian at the time.
During Apollo 7, he flew the lunar module alongside Air Force Major Donn Eisele and Navy Captain Walter Schirra. Prior to his military service, he had been a member of the US Navy and Marines. He retired as a colonel after 54 missions in a fighter jet over Korea.
He transitioned towards public speaking and radio hosting after leaving NASA in 1971. Despite the fact that experts agree that humans have contributed to Earth's average temperature rising, he also publicly denied that human activity is causing climate change. He discussed his perspective while serving as an astronaut in a 1999 interview for NASA. He admitted that he is one of those people that actually never looked back.
"All I remember is just kind of sticking my nose to the grindstone and wanting to do the best I could because," he said. "I didn't realise it at the time, but that was because I always wanted to be better prepared for the next level," the legend added.
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