Total Pageviews

Colleagues and Stargazers Hail Armstrong After Death

By PATRICK MCGEEHAN

Word of the death of Neil Armstrong on Saturday afternoon triggered a torrent of responses on social media, many of them praising the first man to walk on the moon for his inspirational courage enveloped in a humble demeanor.

Other astronauts, entrepreneurs and stargazers from around the world went online to salute Mr. Armstrong, who died at 82 after heart bypass surgery. NASA posted its condolences on Facebook and Twitter, along with a statement from Charles Bolden, the administrator of the agency, that said in part: “Besides being one of America's greatest explorers, Neil carried himself with a grace and humility that was an example to us all. When President Kennedy challenged the nation to send a human to the moon, Neil Armstrong accepted without reservation.”

Within hours of the first reports of his death, RIP Neil Armstrong was one of the most common sentiments posted on Twitter. But some people, including Buzz Aldrin, the British billionaire Richard Branson and Mark Kelly, the astronaut married to former Representative Gabrielle Giffords, had more personal feelings to share.