The death of Neil Armstrong this past Saturday is a reminder that no matter the size of our steps, mankind is still mortal. 
Armstrong, aged 82, had been in the hospital recently. 
“His death followed complications from heart-bypass surgery he underwent this month,” according to NBC.  
Together, Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins undertook the first manned mission to the surface of the moon, principally to achieve the space race deadline set by President Kennedy. 
 ”The primary objective of Apollo 11 was to complete a national goal set by President John F. Kennedy on May 25, 1961: perform a crewed lunar landing and return to Earth,” according to nasa.gov.
Although the three men accomplished the United States’ goal and paved the way for the future Apollo missions, their real achievement was their inspiration of a new generation of scientists and explorers. After the successful landing of the Curiosity rover on Mars earlier this month, NASA assistant administrator for the Science Directorate, John Grunsfeld was asked about what inspired him to become an astronaut and a scientist; he replied  he was primarily influenced as a child by the successful landing of the Apollo 11 astronauts.  
I’m sad that such a remembered man has died and ended an era of space exploration, but NASA administrator Charles Bolden said he has hopes the future will be even brighter because Armstrong lived.  “As we enter this next era of space exploration, we do so standing on the shoulders of Neil Armstrong. We mourn the passing of a friend, fellow astronaut and true American hero,” said Bolden according to nasa.gov. 
 Although before Armstrong’s death, at the recent Mars landing press release, John Grunsfeld expressed his desire that NASA’s accomplishment of landing an important and valuable rover on another planet would have the same outcome as the Apollo 11 mission, inspiring thousands to look to the future and see the great leaps yet to be made. Mankind has come a long way.  Neil Armstrong was the first to set foot on another celestial body and his deed has inspired an entire nation to continue reaching for the stars.  The death of Neil Armstrong signifies the passing of an era, but this is only the end of the beginning of mankind’s journey across the universe.