President Kennedy made a speech to Congress in May of 1961, expressing concern that the United States was falling behind the Soviet Union in technology and prestige. He challenged the nation to put a man on the moon before the end of the decade. On July 16, 1969, the Apollo 11 launched from the Kennedy Space Center. Neil Armstrong and fellow astronaut Buzz Aldrin left the Apollo 11 command module (piloted by Michael Collins) in orbit and performed a landing in the lunar module Eagle. On July 20th at 4:18 p.m. EDT, Armstrong announced to a watching and waiting world that “The Eagle has landed.” Six-and-a-half hours later, he stepped onto the powdery surface with the words, “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” Aldrin soon followed Armstrong down the ladder to become the second man to stand on the moon.
Be sure to spend a minute and look up at the moon tonight; and reflect on how this monumental event the impacted the world... 40 years ago today!
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