Buzz Aldrin on July 20, Aldrin and Armstrong entered "Eagle", and began the final preparations for lunar descent. At 17:44:00 "Eagle" separated from the "Columbia". Collins, alone aboard "Columbia", inspected "Eagle" as it pirouetted before him to ensure the craft was not damaged, and that the landing gear was correctly deployed. Throughout the descent, Aldrin called out navigation data to Armstrong, who was busy piloting the "Eagle". Five minutes into the descent burn, and above the surface of the Moon, the LM guidance computer (LGC) distracted the crew with the first of several unexpected alarms that indicated that it could not complete
Space policy of the Barack Obama administration the development of a new Heavy Lift Vehicle (HLV) to replace the planned Ares V, with the design planned for completion by 2015, two years prior to the Constellation plan, and construction commencing thereafter: Prior to the speech, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk released a statement praising the proposal and criticizing Senators who had opposed it and former NASA administrator Michael Griffin: Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin released a statement in support of the plan via the White House on February 1, prior to the announcement of the 2011 federal budget, which included the changes Obama announced in the speech: Neil