Alan Bean: Fourth man to walk on Moon dies aged 86, Nasa announces

The former US Navy test pilot flew twice into space, first as the lunar module pilot on Apollo 12

Astronaut Alan Bean poses for a portrait in front of a mock-up of the Lunar Module (Nasa)

The fourth man to walk on the moon has died at the age of 86.

Alan Bean passed away at Houston Methodist Hospital on Saturday after a short illness.

His wife Leslie Bean said: “Alan was the strongest and kindest man I ever knew. He was the love of my life and I miss him dearly. A native Texan, Alan died peacefully in Houston surrounded by those who loved him.”

Alan Bean flew twice into space, first as the lunar module pilot on Apollo 12, the second moon landing mission, in November 1969.

In July 1973 he was commander of the second crewed flight to the United States’ first space station, Skylab.

Bean retired from the Navy in 1975 and NASA in 1981 before devoting his time to his Apollo-themed artworks using small pieces of his moon dust-stained mission patches.

“Alan Bean was the most extraordinary person I ever met,” said astronaut Mike Massimino, who flew on two space shuttle missions to service the Hubble Space Telescope.

“He was a one of a kind combination of technical achievement as an astronaut and artistic achievement as a painter.”

“Alan Bean was the most extraordinary person I ever met,” said astronaut Mike Massimino, who flew on two space shuttle missions to service the Hubble Space Telescope. “He was a one of a kind combination of technical achievement as an astronaut and artistic achievement as a painter.”

Born March 15, 1932, in Wheeler, Texas, Bean received a Bachelor of Science degree in aeronautical engineering from the University of Texas in 1955.

He attended the Navy Test Pilot School and accumulated more than 5,500 hours of flying time in 27 different types of aircraft.

In October 1963 he was one of 14 trainees selected by NASA for its third group of astronauts in October 1963.

On November 19, 1969, Bean and Apollo 12 commander Charles “Pete” Conrad landed on the Ocean of Storms.

During two moonwalks Bean helped deploy several surface experiments and installed the first nuclear-powered generator station on the moon.

Astronaut Alan Bean photographed by Commander Charles Conrad walking on the moon (NASA)

He and Conrad also collected 75 pounds (34 kilograms) of rocks and lunar soil for study back on Earth and famously described bright green concentrations of olivine as "ginger ale bottle glass".

“Alan and Pete were extremely engaged in the planning for their exploration of the Surveyor III landing site in the Ocean of Storms," said Harrison Schmitt, Apollo 17 lunar module pilot.

"This commitment paid off with Alan's and Pete's collection of a fantastic suite of lunar samples, a scientific gift that keeps on giving today and in the future."

Mr Schmitt described Alan Bean as "one of the great renaissance men of his generation — engineer, fighter pilot, astronaut and artist."

Four years later Bean commanded the second crew to live and work on board the Skylab orbital workshop.

During what was then a record 59-day, 24.4 million-mile flight, Bean and his two crewmates generated 76,000 photographs of the Sun to help scientists better understand its effects on the solar system.

In total, Bean logged 69 days, 15 hours and 45 minutes in space, including 31 hours and 31 minutes on the moon’s surface.

“Alan and I have been best friends for 55 years — ever since the day we became astronauts,” said Walt Cunningham, who flew on Apollo 7.

“When I became head of the Skylab Branch of the Astronaut Office, we worked together and Alan eventually commanded the second Skylab mission.

“We have never lived more than a couple of miles apart, even after we left NASA.

"And for years, Alan and I never missed a month where we did not have a cheeseburger together at Miller’s Café in Houston. We are accustomed to losing friends in our business but this is a tough one."

Two weeks before his death Alan Bean suddenly fell ill while visiting Fort Wayne, Indiana.

He is survived by his wife Leslie, a sister Paula Stott, and two children from a prior marriage, a daughter Amy Sue and son Clay.