William O’Connell, whose extensive TV and film acting credits in
the 1960s and ’70s included a memorably villainous role on Star
Trek and a string of adversaries in the films of his frequent
collaborator Clint Eastwood, died January 15 at his home in
Sherman Oaks, CA.

William O’Connell with William Shatner in Star
Trek Episode 39: Journey To Babel (11-17-1967)

William O’Connell
(May 12, 1929 – January 15, 2024)

Astronauts Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt were last 2 individuals to walk on the moon as of today.

The U.S.-crewed spaceflight to the moon on Dec. 7, 1972, was
known as Apollo 17 — also known as the final flight of the
Apollo program.

This particular spaceflight included two historic astronauts:
Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt.

These Apollo 17 astronauts would become — on this day in
history, Dec. 11, 1972 — the last humans to walk on the moon
thus far. 

NASA announced Thursday, Thomas K. Mattingly, a key
commander during the Apollo 16 mission to the moon,
died on October 31 at age 87.     

NASA administrator Bill Nelson said “Astronaut Mattingly
was key to the success of our Apollo Program, and his
shining personality will ensure he is remembered throughout
history."

Mattingly in Navy uniform.

Apollo 16

Nearly four decades after he became the first American to orbit
the Earth, Senator John Herschel Glenn Jr.was launched into
space again as a payload specialist aboard the space shuttle
Discovery on October 29, 1998.

At 77 years of age, Glenn was the oldest human ever to travel
in space. During the nine-day mission, he served as part of a
NASA study on health problems associated with aging.

The crew of space shuttle Discovery mission STS-95,
including John Glenn. On this flight, Glenn became
the oldest person to fly in space. NASA

On this day in 1957, the Soviet Union inaugurated the "Space Age"
with its launch of Sputnik, the world’s first artificial satellite. The spacecraft, named Sputnik after the Russian word for "satellite,"
was launched at 10:29 p.m. Moscow time from the Tyuratam launch
base in the Kazakh Republic. Sputnik had a diameter of 22 inches
and weighed 184 pounds and circled Earth once every hour and 36 minutes. Traveling at 18,000 miles an hour, its elliptical orbit had
an apogee (farthest point from Earth) of 584 miles and a perigee
(nearest point) of 143 miles.

Visible with binoculars before sunrise or after sunset, Sputnik transmitted radio signals back to Earth strong enough to be
picked up by amateur radio operators. Those in the United States
with access to such equipment tuned in and listened in awe as the
beeping Soviet spacecraft passed over America several times a day.