Walking on the Moon
Fifty years ago, on July 20, 1969, humans set foot on another celestial* body for the first time. That day, Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstrong and Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin walked on the moon. Astronaut Michael Collins orbited overhead in the space capsule.
The Mini Page celebrates this anniversary by looking back on our amazing first journey to the moon.
Lifting off
The moon missions were launched on May 25, 1961, when President John F. Kennedy announced the goal of sending astronauts to the moon.
His challenge sent people on a journey unlike any other in human history. For the first time, people would leave our home planet to travel to another body in space.
But exploration wasn’t Kennedy’s first goal. In April 1961, the Soviet Union** sent the first human into space. The United States wanted to prove the Soviets could not beat us. The U.S. was in the middle of the Cold War*** with the Soviets, where both sides felt threatened by the other.
A gift of hope
The moon landing took place in the middle of great difficulties in the U.S. The Vietnam War and anti-war protests were raging. Sen. Robert Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr. had been assassinated a year earlier.
But in the summer of 1969, millions of people stopped and watched in awe as humans did something wonderful. For a short time, the moon landing brought the world together.
Stepping out
When Neil
Armstrong stepped onto the moon, he famously announced:
“That’s one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.”
About 1 billion people all over the world watched the moon landing live on TV. Ask your grandparents or other family members what they remember about watching this important event on television when they were younger.