Edgar Mitchell passed away on Feb. 4, 2016 on the eve of the 45th anniversary of his moonwalk in 1971. His passing made Mitchell the fifth moon walker to die since the Apollo project ended. In all, 12 people, all astronauts from NASA, walked on the lunar surface 1969 and 1972.
Neil Armstrong, the first human to walk on the Moon, passed away on Aug. 25, 2012, at the age of 82. The NASA astronaut and Perdue University graduate was 38 years old when he made his famous “giant leap for mankind” on July 21, 1969.
Buzz Aldrin followed Armstrong down the steps of the Eagle during the Apollo 11 mission. After returning to Earth, the Air Force pilot went back to the service in a managerial position. However, struggles with depression and alcohol drove the former astronaut back into private life. Aldrin has been a popular guest on interview shows, talking about his travel to the Moon. He also helped launch the graduate program in space studies at the University of North Dakota, and assisted in the development of a video game in 1993, Buzz Aldrin's Race into Space.
Pete Conrad was the third man on the Moon, setting down on Nov. 19, 1969 during the Apollo 12 mission.
“As commander of Gemini XI, Mr. Conrad helped to set a world's altitude record. He then served as commander of Apollo XII, the second lunar landing. On Mr. Conrad's final mission, he served as commander of Skylab II, the first United States Space Station,” NASA officials report on his official biography page for the space agency.
He passed away in July 1999, at the age of 69, from injuries sustained during a motorcycle accident.
Alan Bean accompanied Conrad on the mission, and he later went on to serve as spacecraft commander of the Skylab Mission 2 from July to September 1973. He retired from NASA in 1981 to dedicate his life to painting. The 83-year-old Navy veteran is still alive today.
After the “successful failure” of Apollo 13, Alan Shepard, the first American in space, touched down on the Moon's surface on Feb. 5, 1971, along with Mitchell on the following flight. The trip to the Moon was just his second time in space. After his return home, he continued to serve NASA until 1974. He passed away in July 1998, at the age of 74.
David Scott was the first Apollo 15 astronaut to touch foot on the Moon, on July 31, 1971. He was one of just three Apollo astronauts to orbit the Earth, as well as travel to the Moon.
James Irwin accompanied Scott on the mission. After the flight, NASA discovered the crew brought stamps onboard the flight without permission. Some of these were sold to a German stamp dealer in order to provide a trust fund for the children of the crew. The space agency assigned them to non-flight positions. Irwin passed away in 1991, following a series of heart attacks.
John Young of Apollo 16 was one of two astronauts to fly the first space shuttle mission, once again making history.
Charles Duke, now 80 years old, accompanied Young on Apollo 16. Both astronauts, who walked on the lunar surface in April 1972, are still alive in 2015.
The last flight to bring humans to the Moon, Apollo 17, touched down in December 1972. Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt, the only scientist to walk on the Moon, are still alive, and retired.
