"You can tell I'm not too bashful about some of my feelings."

"When we get there, if we don't find any life on Mars, from that point on there will be life on Mars because we'll bring it there, whether it's germs and leftover urine bags, whatever it is."

"Who put their foot in the Missouri River first: Lewis or Clark? Who cares!"

"Absolutely the United States should lead in space, for the survival of the United States. It's inspiring for the next generation. If we lose leadership, then we'll be using Chinese capability to inspire Americans."

"I suggest that going to Mars means permanence on the planet - a mission by which we are building up a confidence level to become a two-planet species."

"Exploring Mars is a far different venture from Apollo expeditions to the moon; it necessitates leaving our home planet on lengthy missions with a constrained return capability."

"I think it's inevitable that there will be Earthlings establishing a presence on Mars. And I would say that it would certainly take place by 2050 or shortly thereafter."

"Let's not spend resources that we don't need to be sending astronauts back to the moon. Let's not spend expensive resources on bringing people who have reached Mars back again. Prepare them to become a growing colony."

"The best way to study Mars is with two hands, eyes and ears of a geologist, first at a moon orbiting Mars... and then on the surface."

"Space is not just going up and coming back down again. Space is getting into orbit and being there, living there, establishing a presence, a permanence."

"My own American Dream was to serve my country as best I could and make a difference in America - and in the world."

"My first biography written in '73 was not 'Journey To The Moon.' It was 'Return To Earth.' Because for me, that was the more difficult task - disappointment."

"I grew up in New Jersey and never went up the Statue of Liberty."

"Space tourism is a logical outgrowth of the adventure tourist market."

"I am Buzz Lightyear!"

"Kids, help your parents if they don't know how to use a smartphone."

"I'm in favor of changing the destination of humans. There are a lot of manned missions that can be done, but not in the direction of the moon."

"Is the destiny of the human species to sit back and play with our mouse and computer and imagine, fantasize?"

"A mind concerned about danger is a clouded mind. It's paralyzing."

"As someone who flew two space capsules and twice landed in the ocean, I can attest from personal experience how much logistics work is needed to get you home."

"Going back to the moon is not visionary in restoring space leadership for America. Like its Apollo predecessor, it will prove to be a dead end littered with broken spacecraft, broken dreams and broken policies."

"Mars is far more attractive as an outpost colony for earthlings than the moon is."

"Armstrong described the lunar surface as 'beautiful.' I thought to myself, 'It's not really beautiful. It's magnificent that we're here, but what a desolate place we are visiting.'"

"It's real easy to manufacture what you think the people want to hear. But that's not very honest."

"Nobody ever asks who was the seventh person on the Moon. The only thing they know is who's number one and who's number two. Does anybody know who the last man was?"

"Fighter pilots have ice in their veins. They don't have emotions. They think, anticipate. They know that fear and other concerns cloud your mind from what's going on and what you should be involved in."

"The beauty of Hawaii probably surpasses other places. I like the Big Island and the two mountains, Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea, where you can look out at the stars."

"Going to Mars would evolve humankind into a two-planet species."

"The life expectancy of people going to Mars may be decreased by the higher level of radiation that they receive."

"For the future, primarily, we must educate people in science, engineering, technology and math."

"It was interesting to think that the very first liquid ever poured on the Moon, and the first food eaten there, were communion elements."

"Retain the vision for space exploration. If we turn our backs on the vision again, we're going to have to live in a secondary position in human space flight for the rest of the century."

"Because of his military service, Dad was buried in Arlington National Cemetery."

"America's can-do spirit cast a warm glow across nations and cultures, generating more goodwill and support for our country's ideals and causes than had otherwise been possible."

"I've been to the Titanic in a yellow submarine and the North Pole in a Russian nuclear ice breaker."

"My favourite thing to do on this planet is to scuba dive."

"I know: If you're looking down at Earth, you're looking through an atmosphere that has a bit of haze in many places and not just occasional clouds."

"Nobody cares about the bronze or silver medals."

"Walking around on the moon was significantly easier than we'd thought it would be. There weren't any balance problems, so you weren't tumbling over."

"The biggest benefit of Apollo was the inspiration it gave to a growing generation to get into science and aerospace."

"It's time to open the space frontier to citizen explorers."

"I wrote 'Reaching for the Moon' because I wanted to tell kids that all of us have a moon, a dream, that we can strive for. Even if you don't attain it, you can at least reach for it."

"Every couple of years, we could dispatch people from Earth to Mars."

"The first footfalls on Mars will mark a historic milestone, an enterprise that requires human tenacity matched with technology to anchor ourselves on another world."

"Space travel for everyone is the next frontier in the human experience."

"Instead of planning the retirement of the Space Shuttle program, America should be preparing the shuttles for their next step in space: evolving, not shutting them down and laying off thousands of people."

"The guys who walk on Mars are going to be historic."

"A family needs to work as a team, supporting each other's individual aims and aspirations."

"Some things just can't be described. And stepping onto the moon was one of them."

"I think there would be no shortage of applicants to the government astronaut corps to be settlers on the planet Mars. And I think this would be very inspiring."