Project Mercury also excluded civilian NASA X-15 pilot Neil Armstrong, though he had been selected by the US Air Force in 1958 for its Man In Space Soonest program, which was replaced by Mercury. Although Armstrong had been a combat-experienced NAP during the Korean War, he left active duty in 1952. Armstrong became NASA's first civilian astronaut in 1962 when he was selected for NASA's second group, and became the first man on the Moon in 1969. It was further stipulated that candidates should be between 25 and 40 years old, no taller than , and hold a college degree in a
Neil Armstrong (ice hockey) Neil Armstrong (ice hockey) Neil Armstrong (born December 20, 1932) is a former professional ice hockey linesman, and is an Honoured Member of the Hockey Hall of Fame. Armstrong began playing minor hockey in Galt, Ontario, but he never did go beyond that. He was offered a chance to officiate a game in the same league. Armstrong accepted and later earned his Ontario Hockey Association certification. He officiated his first National Hockey League game on November 17, 1957, when he was 24. In the game, which was between the Boston Bruins and Toronto Maple Leafs, the two teams got into