The fourth man to walk on the moon has died at the age of 86.

Alan Bean passed away at Houston Methodist Hospital on Saturday after a short illness.

His wife Leslie Bean said: “Alan was the strongest and kindest man I ever knew. He was the love of my life and I miss him dearly. A native Texan, Alan died peacefully in Houston surrounded by those who loved him.”

Alan Bean flew twice into space, first as the lunar module pilot on Apollo 12, the second moon landing mission, in November 1969.

In July 1973 he was commander of the second crewed flight to the United States’ first space station, Skylab.

Bean retired from the Navy in 1975 and NASA in 1981 before devoting his time to his Apollo-themed artworks using small pieces of his moon dust-stained mission patches.

“Alan Bean was the most extraordinary person I ever met,” said astronaut Mike Massimino, who flew on two space shuttle missions to service the Hubble Space Telescope.

“He was a one of a kind combination of technical achievement as an astronaut and artistic achievement as a painter.”

“Alan Bean was the most extraordinary person I ever met,” said astronaut Mike Massimino, who flew on two space shuttle missions to service the Hubble Space Telescope. “He was a one of a kind combination of technical achievement as an astronaut and artistic achievement as a painter.”

Born March 15, 1932, in Wheeler, Texas, Bean received a Bachelor of Science degree in aeronautical engineering from the University of Texas in 1955.

He attended the Navy Test Pilot School and accumulated more than 5,500 hours of flying time in 27 different types of aircraft.

In October 1963 he was one of 14 trainees selected by NASA for its third group of astronauts in October 1963.

On November 19, 1969, Bean and Apollo 12 commander Charles “Pete” Conrad landed on the Ocean of Storms.

During two moonwalks Bean helped deploy several surface experiments and installed the first nuclear-powered generator station on the moon.

Astronaut Alan Bean photographed by Commander Charles Conrad walking on the moon (NASA)

He and Conrad also collected 75 pounds (34 kilograms) of rocks and lunar soil for study back on Earth and famously described bright green concentrations of olivine as "ginger ale bottle glass".

“Alan and Pete were extremely engaged in the planning for their exploration of the Surveyor III landing site in the Ocean of Storms," said Harrison Schmitt, Apollo 17 lunar module pilot.

"This commitment paid off with Alan's and Pete's collection of a fantastic suite of lunar samples, a scientific gift that keeps on giving today and in the future."

Mr Schmitt described Alan Bean as "one of the great renaissance men of his generation — engineer, fighter pilot, astronaut and artist."

Four years later Bean commanded the second crew to live and work on board the Skylab orbital workshop.

During what was then a record 59-day, 24.4 million-mile flight, Bean and his two crewmates generated 76,000 photographs of the Sun to help scientists better understand its effects on the solar system.

In total, Bean logged 69 days, 15 hours and 45 minutes in space, including 31 hours and 31 minutes on the moon’s surface.

“Alan and I have been best friends for 55 years — ever since the day we became astronauts,” said Walt Cunningham, who flew on Apollo 7.

“When I became head of the Skylab Branch of the Astronaut Office, we worked together and Alan eventually commanded the second Skylab mission.

“We have never lived more than a couple of miles apart, even after we left NASA.

"And for years, Alan and I never missed a month where we did not have a cheeseburger together at Miller’s Café in Houston. We are accustomed to losing friends in our business but this is a tough one."

Moon pictures show traces left by astronauts Show all 11 1 /11 Moon pictures show traces left by astronauts Moon pictures show traces left by astronauts Reuters Moon pictures show traces left by astronauts NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) image shows the Apollo 17 site on the moon Reuters Moon pictures show traces left by astronauts NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) image shows the Apollo 17 site on the moon, where the tracks laid down by the lunar rover are clearly visible, along with the last foot trails left on the moon. The images also show where the astronauts placed some of the scientific instruments that provided the first insight into the moon's environment and interior. LRO captured the sharpest images ever taken from space of the Apollo 12, 14 and 17 landing sites. Images show the twists and turns of the paths made when the astronauts explored the lunar surface. NASA says the image brightness and contrast have been altered to highlight surface details. Reuters Moon pictures show traces left by astronauts This annotated image released by NASA shows an image of the Apollo 17 landing site taken by the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera(LROC) in orbit around the Moon. The twists and turns of the last tracks left by humans on the moon crisscross the surface in this LRO image of the Apollo 17 site. In the thin lunar soil, the trails made by astronauts on foot can be easily distinguished from the dual tracks left by the lunar roving vehicle, or LRV. Also seen in this image are the descent stage of the Challenger lunar module and the LRV, parked to the east. Getty Images Moon pictures show traces left by astronauts This annotated image released by NASA shows an image of the Apollo 14 landing site taken by the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera(LROC) in orbit around the Moon. The paths left by astronauts Alan Shepard and Edgar Mitchell on both Apollo 14 moon walks are visible in this LRO image. Getty Images Moon pictures show traces left by astronauts This annotated image released by NASA shows an image of the Apollo 17 landing site taken by the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera(LROC) in orbit around the Moon. The twists and turns of the last tracks left by humans on the moon crisscross the surface in this LRO image of the Apollo 17 site. In the thin lunar soil, the trails made by astronauts on foot can be easily distinguished from the dual tracks left by the lunar roving vehicle, or LRV. Also seen in this image are the descent stage of the Challenger lunar module and the LRV, parked to the east. AFP/Getty Images Moon pictures show traces left by astronauts NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) image shows the Apollo 17 site on the moon, where the tracks laid down by the lunar rover are clearly visible, along with the last foot trails left on the moon. The images also show where the astronauts placed some of the scientific instruments that provided the first insight into the moon's environment and interior. LRO captured the sharpest images ever taken from space of the Apollo 12, 14 and 17 landing sites. Images show the twists and turns of the paths made when the astronauts explored the lunar surface. NASA says the image brightness and contrast have been altered to highlight surface details. Reuters Moon pictures show traces left by astronauts NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) image shows the Apollo 17 site on the moon, where the tracks laid down by the lunar rover are clearly visible, along with the last foot trails left on the moon. The images also show where the astronauts placed some of the scientific instruments that provided the first insight into the moon's environment and interior. LRO captured the sharpest images ever taken from space of the Apollo 12, 14 and 17 landing sites. Images show the twists and turns of the paths made when the astronauts explored the lunar surface. NASA says the image brightness and contrast have been altered to highlight surface details. Reuters Moon pictures show traces left by astronauts NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) image shows the Apollo 17 site on the moon, where the tracks laid down by the lunar rover are clearly visible, along with the last foot trails left on the moon. The images also show where the astronauts placed some of the scientific instruments that provided the first insight into the moon's environment and interior. LRO captured the sharpest images ever taken from space of the Apollo 12, 14 and 17 landing sites. Images show the twists and turns of the paths made when the astronauts explored the lunar surface. NASA says the image brightness and contrast have been altered to highlight surface details. Reuters Moon pictures show traces left by astronauts NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) image shows the Apollo 17 site on the moon, where the tracks laid down by the lunar rover are clearly visible, along with the last foot trails left on the moon. The images also show where the astronauts placed some of the scientific instruments that provided the first insight into the moon's environment and interior. LRO captured the sharpest images ever taken from space of the Apollo 12, 14 and 17 landing sites. Images show the twists and turns of the paths made when the astronauts explored the lunar surface. NASA says the image brightness and contrast have been altered to highlight surface details. Reuters Moon pictures show traces left by astronauts This image made available by NASA shows paths left by walking astronauts, single lines, and lunar buggy tracks, parallel lines, from the 1972 U.S. Apollo 17 moon mission. NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter made this and other photographs of lunar landing sites from 13 to 15 miles above the moon's surface. AP

Two weeks before his death Alan Bean suddenly fell ill while visiting Fort Wayne, Indiana.