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Apollo

Five things to know about Apollo 15 astronaut Al Worden

Dawn Campbell, Audience Engagement Director

Al Worden (KPRC2)

HOUSTON – Here are five things to know about Apollo 15 astronaut Al Worden:

  • Al Worden was a gymnast before becoming a lead cheerleader at the United States Military Academy at West Point.
  • Col. Worden served as a member of the astronaut support crew for the Apollo 9 flight as well as backup command module pilot for the Apollo 12 flight before going into space as the command module pilot for Apollo 15 in 1971.
  • He was the first person to perform a spacewalk in deep space, 196,000 miles from Earth.
  • He was good friends with Fred Rogers, children’s TV legend "Mr. Rogers," and made several appearances on his show. Rogers is the person who encouraged Worden to write a children’s book.
  • Worden also has published a book of poetry and his autobiography. He’s now writing the foreword to a book about his friend Neil Armstrong.

    • Watch this video of Worden's daughter sharing her favorite mementos from the Apollo era.

     

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