How does walking on the moon forever change you? Fifty years ago today, at 6:54 p.m. EST, #Purdue astronaut Eugene Cernan (BSEE ’56) found out when he took his first steps on the moon as part of the #Apollo17 mission. Mission commander Cernan and lunar module pilot Harrison Schmitt would remain on the lunar surface for approximately 75 hours, which included three moonwalks. From Dec. 11-14, we are commemorating Cernan’s historic mission with a post recognizing each day that he and Schmitt spent on the moon. Today’s post features a selection from Cernan’s autobiography, “The Last Man on the Moon”: “The question that I am asked most frequently is: ‘Did going to the moon change you?’ I would like to think that I am the same person I have always been, for I still pull on my pants one leg at a time, bleed red when cut, and have to pay the mortgage when it is due. Just like everyone else. But how could having lived on another planet not force at least some sort of change? Walking on the ...