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Born to Viola Louise(m) and Stephen Koenig Armstrong(f) -
Neil Armstrong's career before he became an astronaut was filled with action, from his naval service and test pilot career.
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Neil was admitted at the age of 17 to study Aeronautical Engineering at Purdue University. He was also accepted by MIT, but decided to go with Purdue after watching a football match. -
Neil was fly armed reconnaissance over enemy fortifications and supply lines near the village of Majon-ni. Despite the heavy anti-air fire, his plane wasn't hit at all. He had just bombed the bridge and was pulling up when six feet of his right wing got cut of by an anti-aircraft cable. Due to the loss of his aileron, he had to eject from his plane to safety. -
Neil married to Janet Elizabeth Shearon. They went on to have 3 children, 2 sons and a daughter. The daughter died at the age of 2 from brain cancer. -
Neil was making the 6th flight of the X-15 when he accidentally bounced of the atmosphere and traveled much farther than planed. He set a record endurance time and and flight distance. -
After extensive training and preparation, Neil finally achieved footsteps on another celestial body. Before it came the Gemini program, which actually developed the technologies necessary for such a feat.