[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 13 (Tuesday, January 24, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Page S455]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 SENATE RESOLUTION 27--HONORING THE LIFE AND ACHIEVEMENTS OF EUGENE A. 
                            ``GENE'' CERNAN

  Mr. CRUZ (for himself, Mr. Nelson, Mr. Peters, Mr. Durbin, Mr. Van 
Hollen, Mr. Rubio, Mr. Inhofe, Ms. Hassan, Mr. Cornyn, Mr. Thune, Mr. 
Wicker, and Mr. Gardner) submitted the following resolution; which was 
referred to the Committee on the Judiciary:

                               S. Res. 27

       Whereas Gene Cernan was born on March 14, 1934, in Chicago, 
     Illinois, was raised in the suburban towns of Bellwood and 
     Maywood, and graduated from Proviso Township High School;
       Whereas Gene Cernan began his career as a basic flight 
     trainee in the United States Navy;
       Whereas Gene Cernan was one of fourteen astronauts selected 
     by NASA in October 1963 to participate in the Gemini and 
     Apollo programs;
       Whereas Gene Cernan was the second American to have walked 
     in space having spanned the circumference of the world twice 
     in a little more than 2 and a half hours in 1966 during the 
     Gemini 9 mission;
       Whereas Gene Cernan served as the lunar module pilot for 
     Apollo 10 in 1969, which was referred to as the ``dress 
     rehearsal'' for Apollo 11's historic landing on the Moon;
       Whereas Gene Cernan was commander of Apollo 17 in 1972, 
     during the last human mission to the Moon;
       Whereas Gene Cernan maintains the distinction of being the 
     last man to have left his footprints on the surface of the 
     Moon;
       Whereas Gene Cernan was one of the three men to have flown 
     to the Moon on two occasions;
       Whereas Gene Cernan logged 566 hours and 15 minutes in 
     space, of which more than 73 hours were spent on the surface 
     of the Moon;
       Whereas Gene Cernan and the crew of Apollo 17 set records 
     that still stand today, for longest manned lunar landing 
     flight, longest lunar surface extra vehicular activities, 
     largest lunar sample return, and longest time in lunar orbit;
       Whereas Gene Cernan retired from the Navy after 20 years 
     and ended his NASA career in July 1976; and
       Whereas on January 16, 2016, Gene Cernan passed away in 
     Houston, Texas, leaving behind a vibrant history of space 
     exploration and advocacy for NASA, a legacy of inspiring 
     young people to ``dream the impossible'', and a documentary 
     that encourages continual human space exploration:
       Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate honors the life of Gene Cernan, a 
     Naval aviator, fighter pilot, electrical engineer, and the 
     last astronaut to walk on the Moon.

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