Apollo 14 astronaut Edgar Mitchell, the sixth man to walk on the moon, died Thursday in West Palm Beach at age 85 after a short illness. This week marks the 45th anniversary of his 1971 mission to the moon.

According to a news release from the family, Mitchell was a Navy test pilot from 1958-1972. He began astronaut training with NASA in April 1966. Mitchell was a member of the astronaut support crew for Apollo 9 and a backup lunar module pilot for Apollo 10.

On Jan. 31, 1971, Mitchell, Adm. Alan Shepard Jr. and Col. Stuart Roosa launched the spacecraft from the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral. Mitchell, then a Navy captain, was the lunar module pilot.

From Feb. 5 to 6, Mitchell and Shepard maneuvered the lunar module, Antares, along the Fra Mauro region of the moon. They deployed scientific equipment and experiments on the lunar surface and collected almost 100 pounds of lunar samples.

The crew returned to Earth on Feb. 9, 1971.

Roose died in 1994 and Shepard died in 1998.

Apollo 14 crew achievements include becoming the first to use color TV on the lunar surface, and log the longest lunar surface stay time at 33 hours. The crew set a record for the longest distance traversed on the lunar surface and logged the largest payload returned from the moon.

Mitchell logged a total of 216 hours and 42 minutes in space.

He also was designated as a backup lunar module pilot for Apollo 16.

In 1972, Mitchell retired from NASA and the Navy.

Mitchell had a bachelor's degree in industrial management from Carnegie Mellon University, a bachelor's degree in aeronautics from the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School and a doctorate in aeronautics and astronautics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Mitchell also received four honorary doctorates from New Mexico State University, the University of Akron, Carnegie Mellon University and Embry-Riddle University. He wrote "Psychic Exploration: A Challenge for Science" in 1974 and "The Way of the Explorer" in 1996.

We're saddened by the loss of Apollo 14 astronaut Edgar Mitchell. We salute you: https://t.co/AG4uySVa0f pic.twitter.com/hWvvdzZ0Sk

— NASA (@NASA) February 5, 2016

According to the release, Mitchell's honors included earning the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the USN Distinguished Service Medal, the NASA Distinguished Service Medal and the NASA Group Achievement Award (three times) and was a 2005 nominee for the Nobel Peace Prize.

According to his NASA biography, Mitchell was born Sept. 17, 1930, in Hereford, Texas, and moved to Palm Beach County in 1975.

Mitchell is survived by his daughters Karlyn Mitchell and Elizabeth Kendall; his adopted children Kimberly Mitchell, Paul Mitchell and Mary Beth Johnson; nine grandchildren; and one great-grandchild. Mitchell was preceded in death by his son, Adam B. Mitchell.

Funeral arrangements are pending.