Editing Alan Bean (section)

==Biography==
===Early life and education===
Bean was born March 15, 1932,<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/28978471/abilene_reporternews/|title=Ex-Coleman Resident Bean to be 4th on Moon|newspaper=Abilene Reporter-News|location=Abilene, Texas|date=November 14, 1969|page=2|via=Newspapers.com|last1=Jacobs|first1=Nancy}}</ref> in [[Wheeler, Texas|Wheeler]], the seat of [[Wheeler County, Texas|Wheeler County]] in the northeastern [[Texas Panhandle]], to parents Arnold Horace Bean and Frances Caroline Bean ({{nee}} Murphy), who lived from 1908 to 1983, and 1906 to 1981, respectively.<ref>{{cite web |last=Slaughter |first=George and Kathy M. |date=December 21, 2022 |title=Bean, Alan LaVern (1932–2018) |url=https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/bean-alan-lavern |url-status= |archive-url= |archive-date=}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Gragg |first=Jeff |date=May 11, 2013 |title=Arnold H. Bean (Bean's father) |url=https://www.geni.com/people/Arnold-Bean/6000000078777747186 |url-status= |archive-url= |archive-date=}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Gragg |first=Jeff |date=May 11, 2013 |title=Francis Caroline Bean (Bean's mother) |url=https://www.geni.com/people/Francis-Bean/6000000078777711176 |url-status= |archive-url= |archive-date=}}</ref> He considered [[Fort Worth]] his hometown.<ref name=komo /> He was of [[Scottish people|Scottish]] descent.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Smith |first=Kenny |date=November 23, 2018 |title=The late Alan Bean was the Scotsman on the moon |url=https://www.scottishfield.co.uk/homes-gardens/arts-antiques/the-late-alan-bean-was-the-scotsman-on-the-moon/ |access-date=December 10, 2022 |website=Scottish Field |language=en-GB}}</ref> As a boy, he lived in [[Minden, Louisiana|Minden]], the seat of [[Webster Parish]] in northwestern [[Louisiana]], where his father worked for the [[U.S. Soil Conservation Service]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Evans |first=Ben |date=May 26, 2018 |title=Moonwalker, Skylab Commander and Lunar Artist Alan Bean Dies, Aged 86 - AmericaSpace |url=https://www.americaspace.com/2018/05/26/moonwalker-skylab-commander-and-lunar-artist-alan-bean-dies-aged-86/ |access-date=December 25, 2022 |website=www.americaspace.com |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Carlson |first=Michael |date=May 30, 2018 |title=Alan Bean obituary |url=http://www.theguardian.com/science/2018/may/30/alan-bean-obituary |access-date=December 25, 2022 |website=the Guardian |language=en}}</ref> Bean was a [[Scouts BSA (Boy Scouts of America)|Boy Scout]] and he earned the rank of [[First Class Scout (Boy Scouts of America)|First Class]].<ref>{{cite web |date= |title=Scouting and Space Exploration |url=http://www.scouting.org/About/FactSheets/scouting_space.aspx |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304032406/http://www.scouting.org/about/factsheets/scouting_space.aspx |archive-date=March 4, 2016}}</ref> He graduated from [[R. L. Paschal High School]] in [[Fort Worth, Texas]], in 1949.<ref name="nmmuseum" /><ref name="nhhc">(November 16, 2016). [https://www.history.navy.mil/content/history/nhhc/research/histories/biographies-list/bios-b/Bean-Alan/Bean-Alan-Text.html Alan Lavern Bean]. ''Naval History and Heritage Command''</ref> Following his high school graduation in 1949, Bean enlisted in the [[United States Navy Reserve|U.S. Naval Reserve]].<ref name=":0" />

Bean received a [[Bachelor of Science]] degree in [[aeronautical engineering]] from the [[University of Texas at Austin]] in 1955, where he attended on a [[Navy ROTC|Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps]] (NROTC) scholarship.<ref name=":0" /> While at the university, he also joined the [[Delta Kappa Epsilon]] fraternity.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.fox7austin.com/home/apollo-moonwalker-artist-alan-bean-dies-at-age-86in-houston|title=Apollo moonwalker, artist Alan Bean dies at age 86 in Houston|publisher=FOX 7|date=May 26, 2018|last1=Gecker|first1=Jocelyn|access-date=May 28, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180627173226/http://www.fox7austin.com/home/apollo-moonwalker-artist-alan-bean-dies-at-age-86in-houston|archive-date=June 27, 2018|url-status=dead}}</ref>

===Military service===
He was an Electronics Technician Striker at the [[Grand Prairie Armed Forces Reserve Complex|NAS Dallas]], [[Texas]], until September 1950, when he was [[Military discharge#Honorable|honorably discharged]].<ref name="nhhc"/> In January 1955, Bean was commissioned a [[U.S. Navy]] [[Ensign (rank)|ensign]] through the NROTC at the University of Texas at Austin, and attended flight training.<ref name="nmmuseum" /> After completing flight training in June 1956, he was assigned to [[Second VA-44 (U.S. Navy)|Attack Squadron 44]] ([[Second VA-44 (U.S. Navy)|VA-44]]) at [[NAS Jacksonville]], [[Florida]], from 1956 to 1960, flying the [[F9F Cougar]] and [[A4D Skyhawk]]. After a four-year tour of duty,<ref>[http://www.lunarhall.org/bios/bean.html The Lunar Hall of Fame: Alan Bean] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090325093852/http://www.lunarhall.org/bios/bean.html |date=March 25, 2009 }}</ref> he attended the [[U.S. Naval Test Pilot School]] (USNTPS) at [[NAS Patuxent River]], [[Maryland]], where his instructor was his future [[Apollo 12]] Commander, [[Pete Conrad]], graduating in November 1960.<ref name="komo">{{cite news |date=November 25, 1969 |title=Men of the Apollo XII Crew |page=29 |newspaper=The Kokomo Tribune |location=Kokomo, Indiana |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/20437253/the_kokomo_tribune/ |via=newspapers.com}}</ref><ref name="nhhc"/> Bean took [[art]] classes at [[St. Mary's College of Maryland]] during this tour,<ref>Bruckler, Michael (September 9, 2019). [https://inside.smcm.edu/news/2019/09/nasa-historians-speak-st-marys-college NASA Historians to Speak at St. Mary's College] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200227214816/https://inside.smcm.edu/news/2019/09/nasa-historians-speak-st-marys-college|date=February 27, 2020}}</ref> and flew as a [[test pilot]] on several types of naval aircraft. Following his assignment at USNTPS and aviation safety training with the [[University of Southern California]] (USC), he went through additional instruction with his old Attack Squadron 44,<ref name="nhhc"/> and was assigned to Navy Attack Squadron [[VA-172 (U.S. Navy)|VA-172]] at [[NAS Cecil Field]], Florida, flying the [[A-4 Skyhawk]]s, during which time he was selected as a NASA astronaut.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Kelly |first=Michelle |date=June 23, 1998 |title=NASA Johnson Space Center Oral History Project Edited Oral History Transcript |url=https://historycollection.jsc.nasa.gov/JSCHistoryPortal/history/oral_histories/BeanAL/BeanAL_6-23-98.htm |access-date=December 15, 2022 |website=NASA Johnson Space Center}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=Ross-Nazzal |first=Jennifer |date=February 23, 2010 |title=NASA Johnson Space Center Oral History Project Edited Oral History Transcript |url=https://historycollection.jsc.nasa.gov/JSCHistoryPortal/history/oral_histories/BeanAL/BeanAL_2-23-10.htm |access-date=December 15, 2022 |website=NASA Johnson Space Center}}</ref>

Bean logged more than 7,145 hours of flying time, including 4,890 hours in [[jet aircraft]].<ref name="nasa-bio">{{cite web |date=August 1993 |title=Biographical Data: ALAN BEAN (CAPTAIN, USN, RET.) NASA ASTRONAUT (FORMER) |url=https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/atoms/files/bean_alan.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210830234447/https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/atoms/files/bean_alan.pdf |archive-date=August 30, 2021 |url-status=live |access-date=January 9, 2021}}</ref>

===NASA career===
Bean was selected by NASA as part of [[NASA Astronaut Group 3|Astronaut Group 3]] in 1963 (after not being selected for [[NASA Astronaut Group 2|Astronaut Group 2]] the previous year).<ref>{{cite book|first=Andrew|last=Chaikin|author-link=Andrew Chaikin|title=[[A Man on the Moon]]|year=1994|publisher=[[Penguin Books Ltd]]|isbn=978-0-14-024146-4}}</ref> He was selected to be the backup command pilot for [[Gemini 10]], but was unsuccessful in securing an early Apollo flight assignment. He was placed in the [[Apollo Applications Program]] in the interim. In that capacity, he was the first astronaut to dive in the [[Neutral Buoyancy Simulator]] and a champion of the process for astronaut training.<ref name="notes">{{Citation
|author=von Braun, Wernher
|editor-last=Buckbee
|editor-first=Ed
|title=The Rocket Man: Wernher von Braun: The Man Who Took America to the Moon: His Weekly Notes: 1961–1969
|url=http://www.collectspace.com/ubb/Forum9/HTML/001778.html
|format=DVD
|date=2010
|publisher=Steward & Wise Music Publishing
|isbn=978-1-935001-27-0
|page=1966-07 p. 79
}}</ref> When fellow astronaut [[Clifton Williams]] was killed in an air crash, a space was opened for Bean on the backup crew for [[Apollo 9]]. Apollo 12 Commander Conrad, who had instructed Bean at the Naval Test Pilot School years before, personally requested Bean to replace Williams.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" />

====Apollo program====
{{main|Apollo 12}}
[[File:S69-58880.jpg|thumb|left|Bean during suiting-up for Apollo 12 flight]]
[[File:Apollo12Visor.jpg|thumb|right|Bean on the Moon during Apollo 12]]
Bean was the [[Apollo Lunar Module]] pilot on [[Apollo 12]], the second lunar landing. In November 1969, Bean and [[Pete Conrad]] landed on the Moon's [[Ocean of Storms]]—after a flight of 250,000 miles and a launch that included a harrowing lightning strike. He was the astronaut who executed [[John Aaron]]'s "Flight, try SCE to 'Aux'" instruction to restore telemetry after the spacecraft was struck by lightning 36 seconds after launch, thus salvaging the mission. They explored the lunar surface, deployed several [[lunar surface]] experiments, and installed the first nuclear power generator station on the Moon to provide the power source. [[Richard F. Gordon, Jr.|Dick Gordon]] remained in lunar orbit, photographing landing sites for future missions.<ref name="nasa-bio" />

[[File:(Left to right) Pete Conrad, Dick Gordon, and Al Bean pose with the Apollo 12 Saturn V.jpg|right|thumb|[[Pete Conrad]], [[Richard F. Gordon Jr.|Dick Gordon]], and Alan Bean pose with their Apollo 12 Saturn V Moon rocket in the background on the pad at [[Cape Canaveral]] on October 29, 1969]]

Bean had planned on using a self-timer for his [[Hasselblad]] camera to take a photograph of both Pete Conrad and himself while on the lunar surface near the [[Surveyor III]] spacecraft. He was hoping to record a good photo, and also to confuse the mission scientists as to how the photo could have been taken. However, neither he nor Conrad could locate the timer in the tool carrier tote bag while at the Surveyor III site, thus lost the opportunity. After finding the self-timer unit at the end of the [[Extravehicular activity|EVA]], when it was too late to use, he threw it as far as he could.<ref>{{cite web |last=Agle |first=D.C. |date=November 17, 2004 |title=NASA – Ocean Rendezvous |url=http://www.nasa.gov/vision/space/features/apollo12_prt.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101215135241/http://www.nasa.gov/vision/space/features/apollo12_prt.htm |archive-date=December 15, 2010 |access-date=December 14, 2010 |publisher=[[Nasa.gov]]}}</ref> His paintings of what this photo would have looked like (titled ''The Fabulous Photo We Never Took'') and one of his fruitless search for the timer (''Our Little Secret'') are included in his collection of Apollo paintings.<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.alanbeangallery.com/our-little-secret |title=Our Little Secret |publisher=Alanbeangallery.com |access-date=July 11, 2024}}</ref><ref>Bean, Alan and Chaikin, Andrew. ''Apollo: An Eyewitness Account'', The Greenwich Workshop Press; First Edition (January 10, 1998). {{ISBN|0-86713-050-4}}</ref>

Bean's suit is on display in the [[National Air and Space Museum]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://historicspacecraft.com/spacesuits.html|title=Historic Spacecraft – Space Suit Photos}}</ref>

====Skylab====
{{main|Skylab 3}}
[[File:Skylab 3 Bean shaving.jpg|thumb|left|Bean shaving during the Skylab 3 mission]]
Bean was the spacecraft commander of [[Skylab 3]], the second crewed mission to [[Skylab]], from July 29 to September 25, 1973. With him on the mission were scientist-astronaut [[Owen K. Garriott|Owen Garriott]] and [[Marines|Marine Corps]] [[Jack R. Lousma|Colonel Jack R. Lousma]]. Bean and his crew were on Skylab for 59 days, during which time they covered a world-record-setting 24.4 million miles.<ref name="nasa-bio" /> During the mission, Bean tested a prototype of the [[Manned Maneuvering Unit]] and performed one spacewalk outside the Skylab. The crew of Skylab 3 accomplished 150% of its mission goals.<ref name="nasa-bio"/>

===Post-NASA career===
[[File:AlBeanByPhilKonstantin.jpg|thumb|Bean, February 2009]]
On his next assignment, Bean was the backup spacecraft commander of the United States flight crew for the joint American-Russian [[Apollo-Soyuz Test Project]].<ref name="nasa-bio"/>

Bean retired from the Navy in October 1975 as a [[Captain (United States O-6)|captain]], and continued as head of the Astronaut Candidate Operations and Training Group within the Astronaut Office in a civilian capacity.<ref name="nasa-bio"/><ref name="kennedy19850429">{{Cite news |last=Kennedy |first=J. Michael |date=April 29, 1985 |title=Shuttle Flight Is Lind's First Mission : Astronaut's 19-Year Wait for Space Trip Ends Today |language=en-US |work=Los Angeles Times |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1985-04-29-mn-12831-story.html |access-date=July 7, 2020}}</ref>

Bean logged 1,671 hours and 45 minutes in space while at [[NASA]], of which 10 hours and 26 minutes were spent in [[Extravehicular activity|EVAs]] on the Moon and in [[Low Earth orbit|Earth orbit]].<ref name="nasa-bio"/>