Apparently, Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin has not lost a step since trekking on the moon 41 years ago. At 80-years old, Aldrin has been tagged for a spot on ABC's Dancing with the Stars. It looks like those Nikes did the trick. I might actually watch the show for the first time just to see how he does.
I had the pleasure of spending a couple of days photographing Aldrin at Johnson Space Center for a book project titled Der Mond commissioned by the German Aerospace Center in advance of the 40th anniversary of the first moon landing.
From the starry tie to his crescent moon and star ring, Aldrin is all about space and the business of space. His comments regarding continued space exploration were fascinating. And he wasn't just talking, he has spent years working out a lot of the science and putting his vision on paper.
Getting inside the Lunar Sample Laboratory was a special treat. I was inches away from moon rocks collected during several Apollo missions. The Genesis Rock collected the Apollo 15 team was really cool. Dated at 4.5 billion years, the anorthosite sample is the oldest on record.
For all his intensity about continued space missions, Aldrin also showed a lighter side. He couldn't resist picking up the red phone in the old mission control and saying, "Houston, we have a problem." Little did we know it might foreshadow the current cuts proposed for NASA and space exploration.
Photography © Dave Einsel
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