Eugene Cernan
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Eugene A. Cernan (born March 14, 1934) is a former United States astronaut. He has been into space three times: as co-pilot of Gemini 9A in June 1966; as lunar module pilot of Apollo 10 in May 1969; and as commander of Apollo 17 in December 1972, when he became "the last man on the moon". He was also a reserve crew member for the Gemini 12, Apollo 7 and Apollo 14 missions.
A native of Chicago, Illinois, Cernan grew up in the town of Maywood. He graduated from Purdue University in 1956, with a B.S. in Electrical Engineering. He was commissioned into the Navy through the Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps at Purdue, and became a Naval Aviator flying jets. In 1976, Cernan retired both from the Navy (as a Captain) and from NASA, and went into private business.
Cernan is one of only three men to voyage to the moon on two different occasions (the others being Jim Lovell and John Young), and one of only twelve men to walk on the moon. Cernan orbited the moon on Apollo 10, and landed on the moon on Apollo 17.
He is the author of The Last Man on the Moon, his memoirs of the Apollo program.
"Yes, I am the last man to have walked on the moon, and that's a very dubious and disappointing honor. It's been far too long."
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