Colonel Buzz Aldrin of the Apollo 11 mission spoke Friday night to recount his lunar landing and discuss its implications for our future.

Aldrin accompanied Neil Armstrong as the second man to ever step onto the moon, and McCrary Theatre was filled with students, parents and faculty members anxious to hear him speak.

Aldrin introduced his presentation with a video titled “The Apollo Dream,” which showed video from Armstrong and Aldrin’s famous “giant leap for mankind.” Aldrin’s wife and daughter produced the video, and the inspiring tale it told rekindled the audience’s interest in space exploration as a segue into the theme of his presentation.

He began with a brief history about how he came to be chosen as one of America’s first space pioneers. As a young child, Aldrin was very interested in the moon, although for different reasons than one might think.

The moon intrigued him, he said, “not because I ever dreamed of going there, but because it was my mother’s maiden name: Miranda Moon.”

Aldrin attended West Point Academy to become a fighter pilot for the U.S. Air Force in the Korean War. After the war he went back to school at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where his graduate thesis captured NASA’s eye and set him up for a once in a lifetime opportunity. Aldrin’s with his theory of “space rendezvous” where he used zero-gravity physics to chart the movements of a spacecraft.

At the same time Aldrin was publishing his thesis, NASA was completing preparations for its attempt to land a man on the surface of the moon. Aldrin’s thorough knowledge of space, combined with his prior scuba training, earned him the second spot on NASA’s list of pilots. Aldrin’s journey to the moon was one he’ll never forget.

On July 16, 1969, Apollo 11 lifted off on its revolutionary journey to the moon. When they reached their destination four days later, Armstrong and Aldrin suited up for the dangerous attempt to land on its surface. The landing craft they used had a 60 percent chance of a successful landing, and had barely enough fuel for the journey.

“When we landed, we had 15 seconds left of fuel,” Aldrin said.

Once safely landed, Armstrong and Aldrin stepped onto the moon to behold the strange and alien world.

“We were witness to the utter desolation of the moon with its lifeless, windless, barren landscape. Only its harsh shadows moved with the sun,” Aldrin said.

Nevertheless, Aldrin’s actions that day impacted America with greater force than either of the pilots could’ve ever imagined. Whether it was Aldrin planting the American flag, or Armstrong’s famous commentary, America was captivated by the unknown world of space exploration.

“The true value of Apollo was what all people on Earth witnessed at that triumphant moment … that was the spirit of Apollo, to set sail on a new sea,” Aldrin said.

Today, Aldrin speaks with audiences across America to rekindle that fascination with space exploration. He stresses the importance of missions to send man to Mars, or extending the wonders of space tourism to the common man. Using his experiences with the Apollo mission as an example of what humanity can achieve with a “phenomenal readiness to work,” Aldrin paints a beautiful picture of what the future holds.

“We’re poised at the shores of the cosmic ocean … the sky is not the limit,” Aldrin says.

Whether it is years, decades, or centuries from now, Aldrin hopes we will have achieved these accomplishments and much more. The only thing holding us back is “complacency and lack of clear commitment,” Aldrin said. “The world has a natural curiosity for space, and this curiosity will take humanity to places it never dreamed it would be.”

Reporter: Michael Heil - 09/26/07