CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. • Apollo 15 astronaut Al Worden, who circled the moon alone in 1971 while his two crewmates test-drove the first lunar rover, died Wednesday at age 88.

Worden died in his sleep at a rehab center in Houston after treatment for an infection, said friend and colleague Tom Kallman.

“Al was an American hero whose achievements in space and on Earth will never be forgotten,” said NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine in a statement.

Worden flew to the moon in 1971 along with David Scott and Jim Irwin.

As command module pilot, Worden remained in lunar orbit aboard the Endeavour while Scott and Irwin descended to the surface and tried out NASA’s first moon buggy. Scott is one of four moonwalkers still alive. Irwin died in 1991.

“‘Line of Grey, Be Thou at Peace!’ Godspeed Al,” tweeted Apollo 11 moonwalker Buzz Aldrin, borrowing from their West Point alma mater.

Al Worden

Jason Wachter