Buzz Aldrin Quotes & Sayings

By refocusing our space program on Mars for America's future, we can restore the sense of wonder and adventure in space exploration that we knew in the summer of 1969. We won the moon race; now it's time for us to live and work on Mars, first on its moons and then on its surface. — Buzz Aldrin

Neil Armstrong was the first man to walk on the moon. I am the first man to piss his pants on the moon. — Buzz Aldrin

You can never tell when a commercial space venture will suddenly become viable. — Buzz Aldrin

There's no doubt who was a leader in space after the Apollo Program. Nobody came close to us. And our education system, in science, technology, engineering and math, was at the top of the world. It's no longer there. We're descending rather rapidly. — Buzz Aldrin

The g-forces increased and I wasn't able to continue to hold the camera against the window, so I had to lay it back against my chest, but still continued to photograph the re-entry until there was no more unusual visual effects of the energy in the atmosphere. And it was very comforting to understand that the people in Houston, the controllers, had very high confidence that we were on the right path. — Buzz Aldrin

Fighter pilots have ice in their veins. They don't have emotions. They think, anticipate. They know that fear and other concerns cloud your mind from what's going on and what you should be involved in. — Buzz Aldrin

The beauty of Hawaii probably surpasses other places. I like the Big Island and the two mountains, Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea, where you can look out at the stars. — Buzz Aldrin

For a million dollars, the Russians would take two people, a million apiece, around the moon and back. However, stories, videos that come from the space station, and other people, are a great inspiration to young people for an exciting career field. — Buzz Aldrin

Mars has been flown by, orbited, smacked into, radar inspected, and rocketed onto, as well as bounced upon, rolled over, shoveled, drilled into, baked, and even laser blasted. — Buzz Aldrin

The way I see it, what is going to come out of the moon activities is a respect for U.S. leadership. — Buzz Aldrin

During the divorce process, I lived alone and tended to get extremely down on myself. — Buzz Aldrin

If we can conquer space, we can conquer childhood hunger. — Buzz Aldrin

Save the taxpayer's money by canceling the Ares 1 and V. — Buzz Aldrin

We can't start over and develop a Saturn 5-type vehicle from scratch. — Buzz Aldrin

A hybrid human-robot mission to investigate an asteroid affords a realistic opportunity to demonstrate new technological capabilities for future deep-space travel and to test spacecraft for long-duration spaceflight. — Buzz Aldrin

Long-term, I see robotics prevailing on the moon ... The most important decision we'll have to make about space travel is whether to commit to a permanent human presence on Mars. Without it, we'll never be a true space-faring people. — Buzz Aldrin

Space architectures capable of supporting a permanent human presence on Mars are extraordinarily complex, with many different interdependent systems. — Buzz Aldrin

America must dream again, and have the faith to achieve the dream. — Buzz Aldrin

Retain the vision for space exploration. If we turn our backs on the vision again, we're going to have to live in a secondary position in human space flight for the rest of the century. — Buzz Aldrin

The purpose of going to Mars is for humans to first begin to occupy, permanently, another planet in the solar system. The astronauts or pilgrims, whatever you might call them, are going to be very historically unique human beings. — Buzz Aldrin

Like actors and writers who are on and off again in terms of employment, I had a very unstructured life. — Buzz Aldrin

Before deciding what to do about national space policy, Obama set up an outside review panel of space experts, headed up by my friend Norm Augustine, former head of Lockheed Martin and a former government official. — Buzz Aldrin

Knowledge of the past and an optimistic view of the present give you great opportunities. — Buzz Aldrin

The feeling of reduced gravity and the limitations of the space suit resulted in a slow-motion movement. Perhaps not too far from a trampoline, but without the springiness and instability. — Buzz Aldrin

The first human beings to land on Mars should not come back to Earth. They should be the beginning of a build-up of a colony/settlement, I call it a 'permanence'. — Buzz Aldrin

By venturing into space, we improve life for everyone here on Earth - scientific advances and innovations that come from this kind of research create products we use in our daily lives. — Buzz Aldrin

Apollo 11 will probably go down in history as one of the major responses of two nations facing each other with threatening technologies - sometimes called mutually assured destruction. It was also the America's response to the apparent superiority of the Russians in putting objects into space before USA could. — Buzz Aldrin

I would rather people understand that there is a very, very fortunate American who was given the opportunity, and was in the right place at the right time to have the moment of a lifetime. My mother was born - her name was Marianne Moon. And she was born in 1903, the year that the Wright Brothers first flew. — Buzz Aldrin

Anything we can do in the near future that begins to stimulate the interest of people - seeing somebody down the street have an opportunity to go into space - buoys up the whole neighborhood. — Buzz Aldrin

The society of life on Mars, or the challenge of making Mars more livable, will have significant benefits on our attempts to modify and change in some ways the environment here on Earth. — Buzz Aldrin

There may be aliens in our Milky Way galaxy, and there are billions of other galaxies. The probability is almost certain that there is life somewhere in space. — Buzz Aldrin

I feel we need to remind the world about the Apollo missions and that we can still do impossible things. — Buzz Aldrin

We have the ability, at such high fidelity, to simulate the physical world through computers. But when the spiritual world or human behavior comes into play, we don't have a very good model for that at all. — Buzz Aldrin

I felt pretty confident in relieving myself, since I had the urge. — Buzz Aldrin

As a youngster, I read of Buck Rogers and Flash Gordon. As a student, I wrote English reports on science fiction. And as a fighter pilot, I observed the selection of the Mercury astronauts. All this was fascinating, but I really didn't think I would ever be a part of it. It was only when my good friend Ed White was selected as a Gemini astronaut that I decided to join NASA as part of the Apollo program. — Buzz Aldrin

I want to reach a new generation. That's why I am Twittering now. I have a BlackBerry, an iPhone and a Mac. — Buzz Aldrin

Many say exploration is part of our destiny, but it's actually our duty to future generations and their quest to ensure the survival of the human species. — Buzz Aldrin

The view from space is like having a globe on your desk
it's a broadening experience. — Buzz Aldrin

Mars is there, waiting to be reached. — Buzz Aldrin

I shot down two airplanes in Korea, so I wasn't a slouch. — Buzz Aldrin

Space is not just going up and coming back down again. Space is getting into orbit and being there, living there, establishing a presence, a permanence. — Buzz Aldrin

If you want to say that the sky is black, and if I'm there, even if I fall back down again, I will be weightless for a period of time - maybe that's the definition of space. — Buzz Aldrin

I grew up in New Jersey and never went up the Statue of Liberty. — Buzz Aldrin

There is very little doubt, in my mind, that what the next monumental achievement of humanity will be the first landing by an Earthling, a human being, on the planet Mars. — Buzz Aldrin

You are not going to change the minds of people who are looking for attention. — Buzz Aldrin

History will remember the inhabitants of this century as the people who went from Kitty Hawk to the moon in 66 years, only to languish for the next 30 in low Earth orbit. At the core of the risk-free society is a self-indulgent failure of nerve. — Buzz Aldrin

My first inclination is to be a bit skeptical about the claims that human-produced carbon dioxide is the direct contributor to global warming. — Buzz Aldrin

Ray Bradbury is one who is contributing to the understanding of the imagination and the curiosity of the human race. — Buzz Aldrin

On Apollo 11 in route to the Moon, I observed a light out the window that appeared to be moving alongside us. It was either the rocket we had separated from, or the 4 panels that moved away when we extracted the lander from the rocket and we were nose to nose with the two spacecraft. So in the close vicinity, moving away, were 4 panels. And i feel absolutely convinced that we were looking at the sun reflected off of one of these panels. — Buzz Aldrin

It was challenging to understand what was necessary to successfully carry out all the training simulations that we, as crewmen, would experience, and make a very successful use of that training and education. — Buzz Aldrin

We're number one on the runway. — Buzz Aldrin

Pascal Lee is a true pioneer of Mars exploration. — Buzz Aldrin

In my mind, public space travel will precede efforts toward exploration
be it returning to the moon, going to Mars, visiting asteroids, or whatever seems appropriate. We've got millions and millions of people who want to go into space, who are willing to pay. When you figure in the payload potential of customers, everything changes. — Buzz Aldrin

Once you've been first, it cannot be done again. Not by you, not by anyone else. — Buzz Aldrin

I do celebrity ski races all over the world. — Buzz Aldrin

I am excited to think that the development of commercial capabilities to send humans into low Earth orbit will likely result in so many more Earthlings being able to experience the transformative power of space flight. — Buzz Aldrin

I think the American Dream used to be achieving one's goals in your field of choice - and from that, all other things would follow. Now, I think the dream has morphed into the pursuit of money: Accumulate enough of it, and the rest will follow. — Buzz Aldrin

It's time to open the space frontier to citizen explorers. — Buzz Aldrin

People communicate in Twittering ways. I've learned how to do that. — Buzz Aldrin

There are a lot of people that get interested in something, and they hear about it, and they read about it, and then they watch it happen, and that's why I had quite an interest in the lottery because you'd interest a lot of people, and then just a few would win a chance to do something. — Buzz Aldrin

What are you going to do with astronauts who first reach the surface of Mars and then turn around and rocket back home-ward? What are they going to do, write their memoirs? Would they go again? Having them repeat the voyage, in my view, is dim-witted. Why don't they stay there on Mars? — Buzz Aldrin

I remember it was hard to believe that I was taking a step onto the lunar surface. — Buzz Aldrin

Nobody cares about the bronze or silver medals. — Buzz Aldrin

I expected the unexpected and went [on the Moon] with an open mind. I think the visual scene was described by my words on first landing - "magnificent desolation." Magnificent for the achievement of being there, and desolate for the eons of lifelessness. — Buzz Aldrin

Unfortunately, pioneers will always pave the way with sacrifices. — Buzz Aldrin

I think there would be no shortage of applicants to the government astronaut corps to be settlers on the planet Mars. And I think this would be very inspiring. — Buzz Aldrin

There's a historical milestone in the fact that our Apollo 11 landing on the moon took place a mere 66 years after the Wright Brothers' first flight. — Buzz Aldrin

Not everyone can be an astronaut and go into space, some people with sufficient resources can purchase and fly sub-orbitally thanks to various companies and for more money (considerably) fly into orbit. — Buzz Aldrin

America's can-do spirit cast a warm glow across nations and cultures, generating more goodwill and support for our country's ideals and causes than had otherwise been possible. — Buzz Aldrin

Mars is far more attractive as an outpost colony for earthlings than the moon is. — Buzz Aldrin

I am not sure about Bill Nelson. I haven't heard him say, 'Let's junk the NASA plan to send humans to the moon.' He's not about to say that. That would not be very popular. — Buzz Aldrin

When you're in a spacecraft, you need to know what things you can touch and what things you shouldn't touch! — Buzz Aldrin

There's no guarantee that the United States will be around 200 years from now. — Buzz Aldrin

I'm not in favor of just taking short-term isolated situations and depleting our resources to keep our climate just the way it is today. — Buzz Aldrin

It's not easy to get human beings into orbit. So far only three nations have been able to do that, with all the resources that they put together. And I'm just a little skeptical that that's going to be done by the private sector without making use of what has been done by the government. — Buzz Aldrin

There are always door openings. And gradually, it accumulates. The opportunities open up in front of you. — Buzz Aldrin

Absolutely the United States should lead in space, for the survival of the United States. It's inspiring for the next generation. If we lose leadership, then we'll be using Chinese capability to inspire Americans. — Buzz Aldrin

I'm urging NASA to foster the development of what I call 'runway landers.' No, that's not the name of a high stakes gambler from Vegas. It's a type of spacecraft that flies to orbit like the retiring Shuttles but then glides to a landing like an airplane on a runway. Just like the Shuttles do. — Buzz Aldrin

It's real easy to manufacture what you think the people want to hear. But that's not very honest. — Buzz Aldrin

I really hate to be put in the position of trying to justify something, a decision that was made. I'm a military guy: when a decision is made, I go along with it, whatever the manufactured controversy and criticism. — Buzz Aldrin

Russia perhaps is still entertaining the possibility that the moons of Mars might have access to ice or water. — Buzz Aldrin

Whenever I gaze up at the moon, I feel like I'm on a time machine. I am back to that precious pinpoint of time, standing on the foreboding - yet beautiful - Sea of Tranquility. I could see our shining blue planet Earth poised in the darkness of space. — Buzz Aldrin

Heavy lifting doesn't need to be heavy spending if we do the job right. — Buzz Aldrin

NASA needs to focus on the things that are really important and that we do not know how to do. The agency is a pioneering force, and that is where its competitive advantage lies. — Buzz Aldrin

Us reaching the moon convinced Gorbachev and other leaders that the Soviet Union couldn't compete with the U.S., so they revised their agenda. But people have short memories. — Buzz Aldrin

Unfortunately, kids are led to believe things are easier to achieve than they really are. — Buzz Aldrin

We should've asked China to be a portion of the space station. We should've worked out ways that we can ... just give away the technology that we have that puts things up into space, with cooperation up above the atmosphere that's needed to help each other. — Buzz Aldrin

We feel that this stands as a symbol of the insatiable curiosity of all mankind to explore the unknown. — Buzz Aldrin

Being first outside the spacecraft would bring much more responsibility, and I really wasn't looking for that. — Buzz Aldrin

If you want poets in space, you'll have to wait. — Buzz Aldrin

There are a lot of reasons for not doing something. And if humanity had come up with all the reasons for not doing something we wouldn't have spread across the Earth the way we have. There's a curiosity, and I would submit that that curiosity will put human beings on the surface of Mars. — Buzz Aldrin

Mars could very well be a staging location for the resources of the asteroid belt. We have to learn how to get a payback somewhere, but it's beyond Mars that the real payoff will come from minerals. — Buzz Aldrin

The decision to go to the moon is now appreciated and associated with President Kennedy's speech, but somebody else had told him it was a good idea. It turned out to be a good commitment, but it was a unique situation. — Buzz Aldrin

NASA's been one of the most successful public investments in motivating students to do well and achieve all they can achieve, and it's sad that we are turning the program in a direction where it will reduce the amount of motivation it provides to young people. — Buzz Aldrin

There should be an international lunar base. That is certainly doable. — Buzz Aldrin

There's a need for accepting responsibility - for a person's life and making choices that are not just ones for immediate short-term comfort. You need to make an investment, and the investment is in health and education. — Buzz Aldrin

Human rights problems will always exist for years to come, but maybe they'll lessen somewhat. — Buzz Aldrin

I think both the space shuttle program and the International Space Station program have not really lived up to their expectations. — Buzz Aldrin

I grew up in a country that I thought was special. And it was. — Buzz Aldrin

To move forward, what's required is a unified space agenda based on exploration, science, development, commerce, and security. — Buzz Aldrin