Pete Conrad stands next to the
Surveyor III spacecraft, examining the lander's camera and scoop
(both were removed and brought back to Earth for examination - the
scoop contained a bonus sample of soil!), Apollo 12, November 1969
(AS12-48-7133).
Another of my childhood heroes has gone. Pete Conrad died on Thursday, July 8, 1999 as a result of fatal injuries suffered in a motorcycle accident. Pete Conrad flew into space 4 times, aboard Gemini 5, Gemini 11, Apollo 12 (becoming the 3rd human to walk on the moon), and SkyLab 1. Despite walking on the moon, he recalled feeling more satisfaction from his outstanding repair work carried out on the crippled SkyLab space station which was damaged during launch and salvaged by the efforts of Conrad's first crew to visit, guided by the help of engineers on the ground. Pete Conrad was perhaps the Apollo program's most entertaining astronaut. His first words upon jumping from the ladder of the Lunar Module typified his approach to life: "Whoopie! Man, that may have been a small one for Neil, but that's a long one for me." We'll miss you Pete!
Pete Conrad stands next to the
Surveyor III spacecraft, examining the lander's camera and scoop
(both were removed and brought back to Earth for examination - the
scoop contained a bonus sample of soil!), Apollo 12, November 1969
(AS12-48-7133).
Last update: October 6, 2003