Buzz Aldrin Times", Aldrin supported a manned mission to Mars and which viewed the Moon "not as a destination but more a point of departure, one that places humankind on a trajectory to homestead Mars and become a two-planet species." In August 2015, Aldrin, in association with the Florida Institute of Technology, presented a master plan to NASA for consideration where astronauts, with a tour of duty of ten years, establish a colony on Mars before the year 2040. Aldrin was awarded the Air Force Distinguished Service Medal in 1969 for his role as lunar module pilot on Apollo 11. He was
Edwin Eugene Aldrin Sr. a reservist until he retired from the Air Force Reserve with the rank of colonel on 1 May 1956. He later became a consultant to the manned space flight safety director of the NASA. Aldrin died in San Francisco, California, on 28 December 1974, while he was visiting his daughter there, and was buried in Arlington National Cemetery. He was survived by his sister, two daughters, and son, Buzz Aldrin. His wife Marion suffered from depression and killed herself in 1968. He is commemorated by the Edwin E. Aldrin, Sr. Award, which is presented to an Air Force Institute of