Bean, Alan LaVern (1932-2018), piloted the lunar module Intrepid on the Apollo 12 mission. In November 1969, this flight accomplished the second landing of astronauts on the moon. Bean and astronaut Charles Conrad, Jr., spent 31 hours on the moon. The third member of the crew, Richard F. Gordon, Jr., remained in orbit around the moon in the command module, Yankee Clipper.
Bean was born on March 15, 1932, in Wheeler, Texas. He graduated in aeronautical engineering from the University of Texas in 1955 and then entered the Navy. He completed Navy Test Pilot School and served as test pilot for many types of naval aircraft. In 1963, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) chose Bean to be an astronaut. Bean also served as commander of the Skylab 3 mission, which was launched in July 1973. This mission was successful in conducting various space experiments. After leaving NASA in 1981, Bean pursued a career as an artist. His paintings of space scenes reflect his memories of space exploration. Bean died on May 26, 2018.
