Neil Alden Armstrong was born on August 5, 1930 in Wapakoneta, Ohio. He studied aerospace engineering at Purdue University and had a career as a naval aviator and test pilot. Armstrong was selected to be part of the Gemini 8 and Gemini 11 missions and made history as commander of the Apollo 11 mission, where he became the first person to walk on the moon on July 20, 1969.