<Tr> <Th> Missions </Th> <Td> Gemini 8, Apollo 11 </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> Awards </Th> <Td> Presidential Medal of Freedom Congressional Space Medal of Honor Congressional Gold Medal NASA Distinguished Service Medal NASA Exceptional Service Medal Air Medal (3) </Td> </Tr> <P> Neil Alden Armstrong (August 5, 1930--August 25, 2012) was an American astronaut and aeronautical engineer who was the first person to walk on the Moon . He was also a naval aviator, test pilot, and university professor . When he stepped onto the lunar surface on July 21, 1969, he said: "That's one small step for (a) man, one giant leap for mankind ." </P> <P> A graduate of Purdue University, he studied aeronautical engineering with his college tuition paid for by the U.S. Navy under the Holloway Plan . Armstrong became a midshipman in 1949, and a naval aviator the following year . He saw action in the Korean War, flying the Grumman F9F Panther from the aircraft carrier USS Essex . In September 1951, he was hit by anti-aircraft fire while making a low bombing run, and forced to bail out . After the war, he completed his bachelor's degree at Purdue, and became a test pilot at the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) High - Speed Flight Station at Edwards Air Force Base in California . He was the project pilot on Century Series fighters, and flew the North American X-15 seven times . He was also a participant in the U.S. Air Force's Man in Space Soonest and X-20 Dyna - Soar human spaceflight programs . </P>

Who was the first man on the moon and what country was he from
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