America’s historic achievement of landing astronauts on the moon stands as a pinnacle of human exploration. This extraordinary feat began over half a century ago with Apollo 11. Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin became the first humans to set foot on another world, landing on the moon’s Sea of Tranquility on July 20, 1969. This event captured the world’s attention as Armstrong’s voice echoed, ‘The Eagle has landed.’
Armstrong’s iconic words followed shortly after as he stepped onto the lunar surface: ‘That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.’ The Apollo lunar module was a groundbreaking design, standing 23 feet tall. It consisted of two parts: the descent stage for landing and the ascent stage for return. The descent stage, left behind, marked each landing site from Apollo missions.
Six descent stages remain, visible from lunar orbit. They indicate landing sites of spacecraft like Eagle, Intrepid, Falcon, and others. While Apollo 13’s lunar module Aquarius served as a lifesaving vessel, bringing its crew home safely. The ascent stages scattered on the moon, destroyed after the lunar missions. Some theorize Apollo 11’s ascent stage might still orbit the moon.
Recent Apollo 11 landing site images were taken in 2021 by India’s Chandrayaan-2 Orbiter. NASA is preparing new lunar missions under the Artemis program, partnering with companies like SpaceX and Blue Origin. These private firms are developing landers for missions aiming for the moon. A key test for Artemis III involves docking a crew capsule in low-Earth orbit, with future moon landings possibly starting in 2028.
Unlike the nine-rung ladder used by Apollo astronauts, Artemis moonwalkers will need an elevator due to Starship’s height. On that historic day in 1969, President Richard Nixon spoke to Armstrong and Aldrin from 240,000 miles away, noting a unique unity among Earth’s people at that moment.
This article is part of ‘American Objects,’ a series observing the 250th anniversary of the United States. The Associated Press Health and Science Department is supported by various educational institutions. The AP remains solely responsible for its content.