July 19, 2019: Fifty years ago today, at 1:48 p.m. EDT, Apollo 11 entered lunar orbit and began the final stage of its historic mission to the moon.[1]
Neil Armstrong, who was about to become the first man to walk on the moon, looked out the watch window and said, "It's a view worth the price of the trip."
The next day, Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin would depart from orbit and land the lunar module named Eagle on the surface of the moon. Michael Collins remained in lunar orbit aboard the Command Module Columbia.
On July 20 at 4:18 p.m. EDT, the lunar module had just 30 seconds of fuel, and tension was high at NASA’s command center. Tension turned to celebration when Armstrong announced, “Houston, Tranquility Base here. The Eagle has landed.” About six and a half hours later, with half a billion people watching around the world, Armstrong set his foot on the moon. “That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.”[2]
A total of 12 men walked on the moon during the three and a half years of the Apollo lunar exploration. None have made the journey since.
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