阿姆斯特朗：他的腳印不僅留在了月球

Neil Armstrong shot to world-wide fame as the first person to step on the surface of the moon， a feat that marked a new era of human exploration. For the rest of his life he largely shunned the limelight.

尼爾·阿姆斯特朗曾憑借人類歷史上第一個踏上月球表面的人這一榮譽一夜之間名揚四海，而登月的壯舉標志著人類探索活動進入了一個新時代。不過他的后半生則基本上退出了公眾視野。

Mr Armstrongs family released a statement confirming that he died from complications resulting from cardiovascular procedures performed Aug 8， 2012， three days after his 82nd birthday.

As commander of Apollo 11 in 1969， Mr Armstrong punctuated his exploit with the memorable phrase： Thats one small step for man， one giant leap for mankind. The mission transfixed people around the globe， including nearly one million spectators who flocked to the Florida launch site.

He resisted getting caught up in the hoopla， years later calling himself a “nerdy engineer”. Bucking intense pressure to use his celebrity status for political purposes or personal gain， the self-effacing Midwesterner left it to others to ponder the significance and broader meaning of his accomplishment.

The statement from Mr Armstrongs family referred to him as “a reluctant American hero who always believed he was just doing his job”.

阿姆斯特朗的家人發表聲明，證實他因2012年8月8日進行的心血管手術出現的并發癥去世。手術的三天前他剛剛度過了82歲生日。

作為1969年“阿波羅11號”飛船的指揮官，阿姆斯特朗以令人難忘的一句話精辟地概括了自己的登月之舉：這是我的一小步，卻是人類的一大步。美國的登月計劃震撼了全球，也震撼了涌入佛羅里達發射場地的近100萬圍觀者。

他拒絕投入到火爆的宣傳旋渦中，多年后他自稱是一個“書生工程師”。這個不喜歡出風頭的中西部人頂住了將自己的名人身份用于政治目的或獲取個人利益的巨大壓力，而把自己所取得成就的重要性和更廣泛的意義留給他人去思考。

阿姆斯特朗的家人發表的聲明稱他是“一個不情不愿的美國英雄，他一直認為自己只是做了分內之事”。

Mr Armstrong was born in Wapakoneta， Ohio， on Aug 5， 1930， and spent part of his teenage years on a farm about 60 miles from where Orville and Wilbur Wright more than 25 years ago experimented. He took his first airplane ride at 6 years old.

Mr Armstrong flew 78 missions as a Navy combat pilot in the Korean War and later gained prominence as a civilian government test pilot.

During his historic moon exploration on July 20， 1969， some of Mr Armstrongs other transmissions reflected his unflappable demeanor. After returning to Earth， he appeared in a ticker-tape parade and a 28-city world tour， and the aviator was understated in describing his situation and surroundings some 240，000 miles above Earth. In one of his first transmissions to controllers on the ground， he calmly told them， “I tell you， were going to be busy for a minute.”

Later in the mission， Mr Armstrong， who earned his pilots license as a teenager and idolized Charles Lindbergh， epitomized the calm， assured tone astronauts prized. “Its different， but its very pretty out here，” he matter-of-factly told controllers. “I suppose they are going to make a big deal of all this.”

1930年8月5日，阿姆斯特朗出生在俄亥俄州沃帕科內塔，他的童年有一部分時間是在一個農場上度過的。在距離農場約60英里的地方，逾25年前萊特兄弟曾經進行過飛機試驗。阿姆斯特朗六歲時第一次坐上了飛機。

朝鮮戰爭期間，阿姆斯特朗作為海軍戰斗機飛行員執行過78次飛行任務。后來，他在擔任政府民航試飛員時脫潁而出。

在1969年7月20日阿姆斯特朗進行歷史性的月球探索之旅期間，一些他與地面之間的其他通訊反映出了他的鎮定自若。他返回地面后，參加了一場盛大游行和全球28個城市的巡回宣傳活動，他輕描淡寫地描述自己在地球上空約24萬英里（約合38萬公里）的太空中的情況和周圍環境。在傳送給地面控制中心的首批信息中，他冷靜地對中心說：“我告訴你們，我們要忙上一會兒了。”

登月行動期間，阿姆斯特朗展現了宇航員冷靜、自信的可貴品質。他十多歲時就取得了飛行執照，他的偶像是美國飛行英雄查爾斯·林白。他不帶絲毫感情色彩地對地面控制中心說：“這里與地球不同，但非常漂亮。我想他們會把這一切搞得驚天動地。”

After the voyage， Mr Armstrong worked for a year as a high-level official at National Aeronautics and Space Administration （NASA） headquarters. In his authorized biography， published in 2005， Mr Armstrong fumed at the bureaucracy and the burden of frequent “appearances on demand” by lawmakers on Capitol Hill. He resigned and went on to teach at the University of Cincinnati.

Starting about 1980， he largely retreated from public view to enjoy the tranquillity of a restored 19th-century farmhouse. He raised cattle and corn， served on corporate boards and enjoyed his grandchildren. Always reluctant to talk to reporters， Mr Armstrong sometimes seemed uncomfortable even when he gave speeches or attended events commemorating advances in aviation and space.

登月之后，阿姆斯特朗在美國國家航空航天局（NASA）總部做了一年的高層官員。在2005年出版的授權傳記中，阿姆斯特朗對官僚主義以及要在國會議員的要求下“經常露面”的負擔表示不滿。他隨后辭職，去辛辛那提大學任教。

大約從1980年開始，阿姆斯特朗基本上退出了公眾的視野，在一座翻修后的19世紀農舍中享受平靜的生活。他養牛、種玉米，在公司董事會任職，享受著孫輩繞膝的生活。他一直不愿接受記者的采訪，有時甚至在發表演講或參加紀念航空航天進步的活動中也顯得不自在。