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Buzz Aldrin Gets a Visit From NASA While Recovering in New Zealand Hospital

Aldrin, 86, was medically evacuated from the South Pole earlier this week after he fell ill during a tourism adventure to Antarctica.
Buzz Aldrin at the Science Muesum
Buzz Aldrin speaks at the Science Museum in London on Feb. 28, 2016.Anthony Devlin / PA Wire

Astronaut Buzz Aldrin, who was medically evacuated from the South Pole earlier this week, is continuing to recover in a New Zealand hospital — and is in good spirits thanks to a visit from a friend.

"I had a surprise visitor this morning," the 86-year-old rocket man tweeted from his hospital bed Saturday, along with photos of himself and NASA Deputy Administrator Dr. Dava Newman.

The tweet called Newman a "longtime friend."

Aldrin had been on a tourism adventure to Antarctica when "his condition deteriorated," according to White Desert, which organizes luxury tourism trips to the icy continent. He was evacuated on the first flight out as a precaution and transferred to a hospital in Christchurch, New Zealand, where doctors determined he had fluid in his lungs and prescribed him antibiotics.

The legendary American astronaut — who was part of the first duo of men to ever walk on the moon — is in stable condition, according to his website.

Related: Astronaut Buzz Aldrin Medically Evacuated From South Pole

The photos Saturday showed Aldrin giving a thumbs up as Newman, who was confirmed by the Senate to be NASA's deputy administrator last year, flashed a smile next to him.

While Aldrin is long retired from NASA, doctors with the agency track the health of their astronauts for their entire lives.

Aldrin became the second man to walk on the moon after Neil Armstrong when Apollo 11 made a lunar landing in 1969.