Neil Armstrong, who was the first man on the Moon, has died aged 82.

The US astronaut set foot on the moon on 20th July 1969 and uttered the famous words, “one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind”.

His family released a statement saying he died from complications from heart surgery.

US President Barack Obama said Amstrong was “among the greatest of American heroes – not just of his time, but of all time”.

Armstrong received the Congressional Gold Medal in November last year, the highest US civilian award.

Armstrong spent three hours walking on the moon with fellow astronaut Buzz Aldrin.

Buzz Aldrin said: “It’s very sad indeed that we’re not able to be together as a crew on the 50th anniversary of the mission… [I will remember him] as a very capable commander.”

In 1971, he left NASA to teach aerospace engineering.

Armstrong was born in 1930 and was raised in Ohio, he caught the flying bug at six and flew Navy jets in the Korean War, he joined NASA in 1962.

His family called him a “reluctant American hero” who had “served his nation proudly, as a navy fighter pilot, test pilot, and astronaut”.

Neil Armstrong famously said:

“I think we’re going to the moon because it’s in the nature of the human being to face challenges. It’s by the nature of his deep inner soul… we’re required to do these things just as salmon swim upstream.”

“I believe every human has a finite number of heartbeats. I don’t intend to waste any of mine.”