Buzz Aldrin shot down two MiG-15 aircraft. After earning a Sc.D. degree in astronautics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Aldrin was selected as a member of NASA's Astronaut Group 3, making him the first astronaut with a doctoral degree. His doctoral thesis was "Line-of-Sight Guidance Techniques for Manned Orbital Rendezvous", earning him the nickname "Dr. Rendezvous" from fellow astronauts. His first space flight was Gemini 12 during which he spent over five hours on extravehicular activity (EVA) outside the spacecraft. Aldrin set foot on the Moon at 03:15:16 on July 21, 1969 (UTC), nine minutes after Armstrong first touched the surface,
Buzz Aldrin included 50% of their $475,000 bank account, and $9,500 a month plus 30% of his annual income, estimated at more than $600,000. He has one grandson, Jeffrey Schuss, born to his daughter, Janice, and three great-grandsons. In 2018 Aldrin was involved in a legal dispute with his children Andrew and Janice and former business manager Christina Korp over their claims that he was mentally impaired through dementia and Alzheimer's disease. Aldrin is an active supporter of the Republican Party, headlining fundraisers for its members of Congress, and endorsing its candidates. He appeared at a rally for George W. Bush in