On July 20th, 1969 the America watched proudly as man set foot on the moon for the first time. Millions eagerly watched live as the Apollo 11 crew stepped onto the moons dry dusty surface and began exploring it. Some would say it was the single greatest technological achievement of all time and it changed the world forever. It was not only a quest for knowledge but also a race against the soviets. America had never faced a challenge quite as difficult as this one.
As World War II ended, relations between the United States and the Soviet Union were becoming more and more strained. This marked the beginning of what would be called the Cold War. Several advancements were made by the Soviets in space exploration resulting in the successful launching of the worlds first man made satellite in space, Sputnik, in 1957. The U.S. feared that with the new space technology developed by the Soviets they could spy on us or even launch missles at us from outer space. As a result of U.S. concern, the government took several actions to upgrade U.S. performance in science and mathematics. In addition, the government created NASA through the National Aeronautics and Space Act in 1958 to focus our country’s resources to catch and surpass the Soviets’ space program. In 1961, John F. Kennedy made his famous speech where he promised to put a man on the moon by the end of the decade “not because it was easy but because it was hard”. It would be mainly up to NASA to make that promise come true. (http://www.grc.nasa.gov…).
In 1961 the decision was made to go to the moon. By the time that the goal was accomplished in 1969, only few of the key figures associated with the decision were still in leadership positions in the government (http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office…). President Kennedy was assassinated in November of 1963, and science adviser Jerome B. Wiesner returned to MIT soon afterwards. Lyndon B. Johnson succeeded Kennedy as president but left office in January 1969, just a few months before the landing took place. James E. Webb, the NASA Administrator, boldly guided NASA through most of the 1960s, but his image was tarnished by, among other things, a 1967 Apollo 1 accident that tragically killed three astronauts. Consequently, he retired from office in October of 1968. Several other early supporters of Apollo in Congress and other places passed away during the 1960s before the program was fully completed (http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office…).
Despite many setbacks NASA had kept their space program going strong and in 1968 they were ready to send the first manned American space craft to the moon for the Apollo 8 mission. At first the mission had been planned as a flight to test Apollo hardware in the relatively safe confines of low-Earth orbit, but senior engineer George M. Low of the Manned Spacecraft Center at Houston, Texas, and Samuel C. Phillips, Apollo Program Manager at NASA Headquarters, obtained approval to make it a circumlunar flight, that is, around the moon. The advantages of this were important because crucial technical and scientific knowledge was gained and it was a public demonstration of what the United States could achieve as well. Apollo 8 made one and a half Earth orbits, then headed out to the moon. It orbited the Moon on the 24th and 25th of December and then headed home. It “splashed down” in the Pacific Ocean on the 27th of December ( http://www.hq.nasa.gov/…)
This was an important prelude to actually landing on the Moon. Apollo 8 had achieved its goal and acheived many other firsts including the first manned mission launched on the Saturn V, first manned launch from NASA’s new Moonport, first pictures taken by humans of the Earth from deep space, and first live TV coverage of the lunar surface (http://www.nasm.si.edu…).
Two more missions would occur before Apollo 11 could take place. The Apollo 9 mission saw the first manned flight of the lunar module and it was also the first manned flight of all of the Apollo lunar hardware in Earth’s orbit. Lunar module pilot Russel L. Schweickart performed a 37 minute EVA. Human reactions to space and weightlessness were tested in 152 orbits. The Apollo 10 mission was a complete staging of the Apollo 11 mission without actually landing on the Moon. The mission was the first to travel to the Moon with the entire Apollo spacecraft configuration and the second to orbit the Moon. Astronauts Thomas Stafford and Eugene Cernan decended inside the Lunar Module to within 14 kilometers of the lunar surface achieving the closest approach yet to the moons surface (http://www.nasm.si.edu…).
Finally on the 16th of July, in 1969 Apollo 11 lifted off. This was to be the very first walk made by a man on a celestial body. The crew, Neil Armstrong, Michael Collins, and Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin had trained for a long time for this mission. The mission plan of Apollo 11 was to land two men on the lunar surface and return them safely to Earth (http://www.lpi.usra.edu…).
After launching and confirming that all the hardware was working well the astronauts started for their 3 day trip to the moon. At 4:18 PM EST. on July 20th, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin Landed the lunar module, the Eagle, onto the moons surface while Michael Collins orbited above in the Apollo Command module. Armstrong was the first man out on the moons surface and it was here he said the famous words “One small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind”. Aldrin came out next and he and his partner explored around the landing site in the moons 1/6 gravity, planted an American flag, collected soil and rock samples, and set up scientific experiments. The next day they launched back to the Apollo capsule orbiting overhead and began the return trip to Earth, splashing down in the Pacific on the 24th of July (http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office…)
The Apollo missions achieved many important things for the U.S. and the world. First, and probably most important, the Apollo program was successful in accomplishing the political goals for which it had been created. At the time of the Apollo 11 landing, Mission Control in Houston flashed the words of President Kennedy announcing the Apollo commitment on its big screen. Those phrases were followed with these: “TASK ACCOMPLISHED, July 1969.” This was proof positive that the space program was all worthwhile (http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office…)
Second it was the source of many technilogical breakthroughs. There were many new technologies and inventions that came out due to advances made in the space program. The lunar landing had a huge impact on the world and on life as it was known back then. Even with all the things that were occuring during that time frame of the late 60′s and early 70′s almost nothing can come close to having the same impact that man landing on the moon did. After Apollo 11 there were a few more moon landings but none could come close to the excitement that the first one had and still do this day the U.S. is the only country that has ever been there. Certainly Neil Armstrong said it best- landing on the moon was one giant leap for mankind.