Charles "Pete" Conrad Jr. ’53

Famed astronaut Pete Conrad, the third man to walk on the moon and the first to carry a Princeton flag on its surface, died July 8, 1999, in a California motorcycle accident. Pete graduated from Darrow School and majored in aeronautical engineering. His club was Colonial.

After graduation Pete became a naval aviator, and in 1962 was selected to be an astronaut. In 1965, he piloted the eight-day Gemini 5 flight, which set an endurance record in orbiting the earth. Princeton awarded him an honorary degree in 1966. He was commander of the Apollo 12 spacecraft for the second lunar landing in 1969. He spent over seven hours on the moon's surface conducting experiments. When he stepped off he shouted, "Whoopee! Man, that may have been a small one [step] for Neil [Armstrong] but that's a long one for me." In 1973, Pete commanded the first manned Skylab mission, and set a world record of 28 days in space. After retiring from NASA and the Navy he was president of Universal Space Lines.

We express deep sympathy to his wife, Nancy, and sons, Peter, Thomas, and Andrew. In an age in which the beautiful people are glorified, Pete was one of a vanishing breed of real heroes. We grieve at the passing of one of Princeton's most prominent alumni.

The Class of 1953