Buzz Aldrin
He stepped onto the lunar dust second, but his life became a relentless mission to advocate for humanity's future in space.
Born 1930 (age 96)·American astronaut·Birthday: January 20·The Silent Generation
Biography
Born Edwin Eugene Aldrin Jr. in 1930, the man the world knows as Buzz carved a path defined by precision and pressure. A West Point graduate and Korean War fighter pilot with a doctorate in astronautics, he was the first astronaut with a doctoral degree. His 1966 Gemini 12 mission proved crucial techniques for working in space. While history remembers him as the second man on the Moon in 1969, his post-NASA life has been a complex, public journey of advocacy. He championed a sustained human presence on Mars long before it was fashionable, authored science fiction, and battled personal demons with candor. More than a historical figure, he transformed into space exploration's most persistent, and sometimes controversial, evangelist.
The Silent Generation
1928–1945
Born between the Depression and the end of WWII. Too young to fight, old enough to remember. They became the conformist middle managers of the 1950s — and the civil rights leaders who quietly dismantled Jim Crow.
Buzz was born in 1930, placing them squarely in The Silent Generation. The events that shaped this generation — world wars, depression, and rapid industrialization — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Buzz Was Born
The biggest hits of 1930
#1 Movie
All Quiet on the Western Front
Best Picture
All Quiet on the Western Front
Buzz's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1930Born
Pluto discovered
Gas: $0.20/galHome: $3,510President: Herbert Hoover"Body and Soul" — Paul WhitemanBest Picture: All Quiet on the Western Front
1935Started school
Social Security Act signed into law
Gas: $0.19/galHome: $3,450President: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Cheek to Cheek" — Fred AstaireBest Picture: Mutiny on the Bounty
1943Became a teenager
Allies invade Sicily; Battle of Stalingrad ends
Gas: $0.21/galHome: $3,290Min wage: $0.30/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"I've Heard That Song Before" — Harry JamesBest Picture: Casablanca
1946Could drive
United Nations holds its first General Assembly
Gas: $0.21/galHome: $5,150Min wage: $0.40/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Prisoner of Love" — Perry ComoBest Picture: The Best Years of Our Lives
1948Could vote
Israel declares independence; Berlin Blockade begins
Gas: $0.26/galHome: $7,450Min wage: $0.40/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Twelfth Street Rag" — Pee Wee HuntBest Picture: Hamlet
1951Turned 21
First color TV broadcast in the US
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $7,925Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Too Young" — Nat King ColeBest Picture: An American in Paris
1960Turned 30
Kennedy-Nixon debates become first televised presidential debates
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $11,900Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Theme from A Summer Place" — Percy FaithBest Picture: The Apartment
1970Turned 40
First Earth Day; The Beatles break up
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $17,000Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Bridge over Troubled Water" — Simon & GarfunkelBest Picture: Patton
1980Turned 50
John Lennon shot and killed in New York
Gas: $1.19/galHome: $47,200Min wage: $3.10/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Call Me" — BlondieBest Picture: Ordinary People
1990Turned 60
Hubble Space Telescope launched; Germany reunifies
Gas: $1.15/galHome: $79,100Min wage: $3.80/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"Hold On" — Wilson PhillipsBest Picture: Dances with Wolves
2000Turned 70
Y2K passes without incident; contested Bush-Gore election
Gas: $1.51/galHome: $119,600Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Breathe" — Faith HillBest Picture: Gladiator
2010Turned 80
Deepwater Horizon oil spill; iPad launched
Gas: $2.79/galHome: $147,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Tik Tok" — KeshaBest Picture: The King's Speech
2026Age 96 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- As pilot of Gemini 12 in 1966, he performed a record-setting 5+ hour spacewalk that proved astronauts could work effectively outside a spacecraft.
- He was the Lunar Module pilot for Apollo 11 and became the second human to walk on the Moon on July 20, 1969.
- He developed orbital rendezvous techniques used in space missions, drawing from his doctoral thesis at MIT.
- He received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest U.S. civilian award, in 1969 alongside his Apollo 11 crewmates.
Did You Know?
His mother's maiden name was 'Moon'.
He legally changed his first name from Edwin to 'Buzz' in 1988.
He punched a conspiracy theorist in the face in 2002 after the man demanded he swear on a Bible that the Moon landing was real.
He appeared as himself on 'The Simpsons' and 'The Big Bang Theory'.
““Mars is there, waiting to be reached.””
