Apollo 12 astronaut Alan Bean dead at 86
Washington, May 27: Alan Bean, a NASA astronaut who journeyed into space two times and, as part of the Apollo 12 mission in 1969, became the fourth man to walk on the moon, died at the age of 86 at a hospital in Houston, the US space agency announced.
NASA announced his death on Saturday night noting that he had fallen ill during two weeks of travel, reports The Washington Post.
Bean was born on March 15, 1932, in Wheeler, Tex., and completed high school in Fort Worth.
He was a Navy test pilot first and later joined NASA's astronaut corps in 1963.
He made his first voyage into space on November 14, 1969, four months after the historic first landing on the moon of Apollo 11, commanded by Neil Armstrong.
The three astronauts aboard Apollo 12 were Charles "Pete" Conrad Jr., the mission commander, Richard F. Gordon Jr., the command module pilot, and Bean, whose duty was as lunar module pilot.
After more than four days of flying through space, Conrad and Bean settled onto the lunar surface on November 19, landing in a broad plain called the Ocean of Storms.
Four years later, Bean returned to space as commander of the second mission to the Skylab orbiting space station. He and two astronauts, Jack Lousma and Owen Garriott, stayed aloft for 59 days, conducting a variety of biological experiments to test the body's ability to endure the physical and psychological demands of prolonged space flight.
In the late 1970s, Bean became chief of the astronaut training programme, preparing for the first shuttle mission, which was launched in 1981, The Washington Post reported.
He soon retired from NASA and devoted himself to painting, a longtime hobby that had become an overriding passion.
His paintings have been exhibited at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum in Washington and have sold to collectors for well in excess of $100,000.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Telangana Urdu daily publishes blank editorial in protest against Congress government
Hyderabad: Telangana-based Urdu daily The Munsif Daily has published a blank editorial in protest against the Congress-led state government's alleged decision to freeze government advertisements. The newspaper claims it is being targeted for its critical coverage of the government's shortcomings.
Comparing the move to the Emergency imposed by Indira Gandhi in the 1970s, the daily accused the Congress government, led by Chief Minister Revanth Reddy, of attempting to suppress press freedom.
A Congress spokesperson told NDTV that the government had reduced spending on newspaper advertisements and that it was the government's prerogative to decide whom to support.
In a statement, *Munsif* Executive Editor Ather Moin said the newspaper had reported on communal unrest under the Congress rule, highlighting police failures and the state's inaction. It covered issues such as the demolition of an abandoned mosque in Chilkur, the removal of dupattas from minority schoolgirls' uniforms, and the government's failure to protect Waqf properties. The daily also raised concerns about delayed salaries for imams and muezzins, non-payment of stipends for divorced women, and the absence of a Muslim representative in the Telangana cabinet.
"If the Revanth government expects us to convince our readers that Telangana has turned into a land of milk and honey under Congress rule, then that is something we cannot do," the statement read. "Instead, we shall continue to ask: Why have lands turned barren? Why has starvation forced the poor to the brink? Why have helpless daughters been violated?"
The editorial also criticised Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, recalling his 2023 statement in Washington about press freedom being under threat in India. It claimed that while several Urdu newspapers had criticised the Modi government without facing ad revocations, the Congress government in Telangana was punishing Munsif for its reportage.
"In 1975, Indira Gandhi tried to silence the press—and failed. Today, her party is repeating history. But let it be known: The pen is still mightier than the sword. Journalism in India will not be silenced," the statement added.
_vb_05.jpeg)
