Facts about Michael Collins

1. 06

   Michael Collins served as Director of the National Air and Space Museum from 1971 to 1978, overseeing the institution during its establishment as one of the world's premier aviation and space museums.

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2. 05

   Gemini 10 in July 1965 saw Michael Collins perform the second spacewalk in American history, lasting nearly 50 minutes outside the spacecraft.

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3. 04

   Astronaut Michael Collins authored Carrying the Fire in 1974, a detailed autobiography recounting his experiences as a Gemini and Apollo astronaut spanning nearly 900 pages.

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4. 03

   As a test pilot, Michael Collins flew the X-20 Dyna-Soar experimental aircraft program before joining NASA's astronaut corps in 1963.

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5. 02

   In 1930, Michael Collins published The Big Fellow, a memoir about his relationship with Irish revolutionary leader Eamon de Valera.

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6. 01

   During the Apollo 11 mission in 1969, Michael Collins orbited the Moon 30 times while Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin descended to the surface.

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