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Why RIP Neil Armstrong Is Trending One Year Later

By Kim LaCapria
Published on: 03:08 PST, Aug 27, 2013

Famed astronaut Neil Armstrong died… but back in 2012, so while it’s sad, it’s also not exactly news.

And in whichever high esteem we hold Neil Armstrong for his lofty place in history and epic moonwalk, it seems our own memories are so short that we totally forgot he’s been dead for a year and change.

When Neil Armstrong died in 2012, it was a big news story, and the scientific community in particular mourned the man who became the face of America’s new frontier in space.

In light of that, it’s a little bit sad that no one remembered we mourned his loss last year. However, over on Twitter and Facebook, “RIP Neil Armstrong” is being shared and re-tweeted, and we suppose it’s cool to have the man who gave so much to science back in the news, even if his death isn’t news by strict definition.

Some have remembered Neil Armstrong a year after his death with kind condolences, and one person tweeted:

“A bashful Galahad who inspired us all has passed away – RIP Neil Armstrong http://nyti.ms/145CdP7”

A second said:

“The Eagle has landed. R.I.P. Neil Armstrong”

Another wanted to know who started it:

“So who is responsible for making Neil Armstrong’s death go viral a year after he died?”

Others took to Twitter to joke about the RIP Neil Armstrong confusion, quipping:

As far as why Neil Armstrong’s death re-trended on social media, we have a theory as to how it may have happened. Very popular science and social media entity “I F***ing Love Science” tweeted to mark the anniversary of Neil Armstrong’s death — which may have been misread by some as an announcement:

As RIP Neil Armstrong continues to trend, we have to say that here at the Inquisitr, this is the first Twitter “death hoax” we’ve seen posthumously.

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