20:17:40 UTC, 20 July 1969. Contrary to popular belief, few people remember the first words actually spoken from the Moon. The first words were procedural, hardly memorable: "Contact light; Okay, engine stop; ACA out of detent," etc. Then, in words intended for public consumption, spoken to a worldwide audience so enthralled with the mission that tens of millions were listening and watching, live, in fuzzy black and white by Neil Armstrong: "Houston, Tranquility Base here. The Eagle has landed." It was a culmination of a dream that dated back millennia, although the landing could trace its specific origin to a speech by the President of the United States, John Fitzgerald Kennedy, on 25 May 1961: ". . . I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth. . . " Landing Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin on the Moon had cost the lives of three astronauts in the Apollo 1 fire, as well as something approaching $125 billion (in 2009 dollars) of American treasure. It stands as the landmark technical achievement in the 6,000-year recorded history of the human race.
This photo scrapbook shows images some famous, others unknown that chronicle the epic journey of Buzz Aldrin, Neil Armstrong, and Michael Collins aboard Apollo 11, 40 years ago.
This photo scrapbook shows images some famous, others unknown that chronicle the epic journey of Buzz Aldrin, Neil Armstrong, and Michael Collins aboard Apollo 11, 40 years ago.
