Footprints on the Moon
The moon landing 1969, more famously known as Apollo 11, was the first time in human history that man landed on and explored the moon. The feat is to this day considered on of the greatest technological marvel of human civilization. It is also represents some of the largest investments in science by a government coming at the tune of 200 billion dollars in current inflation adjusted U.S. currency. However the moon landing was the work of more than one individual or even one administration.
The moon landing was the culmination of a sort of peaceful arms race between the Soviet Union and the United States. The first salvo of this conflict was started with the launch of sputnik, the first artificial satellite, in the 1950s. This event stunned American and almost caused a panic concerning the military and technological capacity of the Soviet Union. This led to the formation under the Eisenhower administration of National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
The program from thee get go wanted to put a man from the moon but it would take the leader ship of the Kennedy administration to get the ball rolling on the Apollo program. Apollo 11 was the culmination of the Apollo program which was a series of missions that tested space craft and if the aeronauts could survive the rigors of outer space. The culmination of all this research would be Apollo 11.
The Moon landing has been made famous by the first two astronauts to set foot on the Moon Buzz Aldrin and Neil Armstrong. Everything about the mission was record breaking from the first television signal projected of the moon at a distance to the revolutionary lunar lander which not only had to land on the moon but return back to the main capsule for the return trip home.
The breakthroughs made on that successful mission laid the foundation for the future of United States Space program and played a key role in fostering the computer age that would later emerge in 1980s and 1990s. The most staggering statistic is the explosion of the technological advances needed to make the moon landing possible. According to some experts it was the equivalent of a civilization developing over 10000 years. To think that such leaps were made in less than a decade is a testament to the space program and the scientist that developed its technologies.
We have written many articles about Apollo 11 for Universe Today. Here’s an article about the first man on the Moon, and here’s an article about the Apollo 11 landing site.
If you’d like more info about the 1969 Moon landing, the best place to look is the Apollo 11 Mission Webpage. I also recommend you check out the Apollo 11 Video Streams.
We’ve recorded many episodes of Astronomy Cast, including one about Moon Exploration. Check it out, Episode 114: The Moon, Part 2 – Exploration of the Moon.
Reference:
NASA: Apollo 11
Comments on this entry are closed.