Michael Collins

Michael Collins, born on October 31, 1930, in Rome, Italy, was a distinguished American astronaut and test pilot. In 1963, he was chosen as part of NASA's third group of astronauts, comprising fourteen members. Collins embarked on two significant space missions during his career. His inaugural flight was aboard Gemini 10, where he and fellow astronaut John Young successfully executed two rendezvous with different spacecraft, and Collins conducted two extravehicular activities (EVAs). His second mission, Apollo 11, was historic; while Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin made humanity's first lunar landing, Collins orbited the Moon, making him one of only 24 individuals to have traveled to lunar space.

Before joining NASA, Collins graduated from the United States Military Academy and served in the U.S. Air Force, flying F-86 aircraft at Chambley-Bussieres Air Base in France. He later attended the USAF Experimental Flight Test Pilot School at Edwards Air Force Base in 1960 and was initially unsuccessful in his application to the second astronaut group, but ultimately joined the third.

After retiring from NASA in 1970, Collins served as the Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs and later became the director of the National Air and Space Museum, a role he held until 1978. He then took on the position of undersecretary of the Smithsonian Institution and later became Vice President of LTV Aerospace until 1985 when he ventured into entrepreneurship. Collins was married to Patricia until her passing in April 2014 and had three children: Kate, Ann, and Michael Jr.