News-Record.com

Buzz Aldrin speaks at High Point University's graduation tomorrow. It will be 40 years this July 20 since Aldrin became the second human being to walk on the moon.

Do today's college graduates have any idea of the magnitude of that event?

They weren't even born yet when the last manned moon landing occurred on Dec. 11, 1972.

Here's a summary of the six Apollo landings. It excludes the infamous, heroic Apollo 13.

And, yes, there are people who still say it was all a fake.

I think Buzz Aldrin and his fellow astronauts were the real deal.

We can celebrate our history of space exploration. I still remember the immense excitement generated by the pioneering flights of Alan Shepard, John Glenn and others. They were national heroes.

There have been tragedies, too, which just made us appreciate the courage of these daring men and (later) women all the more.

NASA's work goes on. The shuttle Atlantis is scheduled to take off Monday with seven aboard on a mission to the Hubble Space Telescope.

There are long-term plans for a return to the moon "and possibly to mars and beyond."

More exciting days lie ahead.

Aldrin, now 79, may not live to see them. Some of his contemporaries already have passed away.

Who would have thought 40 years ago that an entire generation of moonwalkers might be gone before anyone else would follow in their footsteps?

Aldrin should inspire the HPU grads to aim for the moon themselves.