Buzz Aldrin has been to space, but he’s not beyond earthly problems. Aldrin, a former NASA astronaut who was on the first manned mission to the Moon, was evacuated from the South Pole recently after falling ill, his tour operators announced today.
Aldrin, 86, had been eagerly Tweeting about his upcoming South Pole trip, announcing “South Pole here I come!” on Tuesday as he prepared to board his flight, wearing a shirt emblazoned with Mars. Aldrin had been Tweeting about his trip throughout the week as he flew from Dubai to Cape Town, South Africa before hopping over to the frozen continent.
Videos by VICE
For a man nearing 90 years old, Aldrin shows few signs of his age. According to his Twitter, he’s often taking international trips to check out new technology, do talks on his NASA career and boldly going where most of us will never go.
Antarctic tour company White Desert evacuated Aldrin from the South Pole to McMurdo Station, an Antarctic research station, according to a release. His condition was reported to be stable, and he is being cared for by US Antarctic Program doctors.
The company didn’t state what caused Aldrin to become ill or whether he would rejoin his tour group during the trip. But it doesn’t sound like this will stop him for too long.
Get six of our favorite Motherboard stories every day by signing up for our newsletter.
