Moon+Walk

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=Moon Walk=

Serena Mcniff
== On July 16th 1969, Neil Armstrong, Edwin E. Aldrin, and Michael Collins, launched a space shuttle named Apollo 11 into the atmosphere. This mission was one of the most monumental space missions ever in history. Apollo 11 was headed to the moon, and Armstrong, Aldrin, and Collins were going to be the first humans ever to set foot on the moon. 600 Million people were watching as the moment approached and Apollo 11 was launched into the sky. There had been so much preparation going into this mission. The world watched as three American men made scientific history. ==

Leading Up to Apollo 11 Launch:
Before the launch of the apollo 11 spacecraft, there had been many missions. These missions the mercury missions, the gemini missions and the apollo missions. Those three programs each had a few missions within them. The mercury and gemini missions were mostly just exploration in the orbit of earth. The first apollo mission (apollo 1) was an utter catastrophe and almost shut down the entire apollo program. The apollo 1 mission killed 3 astronauts during a flight simulation. This malfunction was due to poor manufacturing on the part of NASA. The next few apollo missions used chimpanzees instead of humans so that there would be no human casualties. After NASA felt comfortable and had done enough test flights, they were ready to launch the most important spacecraft, Apollo 11. During Kennedy's presidency, in a 1961 address, Kennedy stated that his goal was to have a man on the moon by the end of the decade. After his assassination americans felt that it was now even more important to carry out his dying wish for the country.
 * What did John F. Kennedy say in his address to congress in 1961? How did this increase the sense of urgency at NASA?**

How did having a man on the moon make such a large impact on history?
That one first monumental step would go down as one of the most monumental moments in american history and throughout the world. This was so significant because it represented an expansion into an era of space exploration. It gave humans a connection with space and the unknown.

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Neil Armstrong was the commander of the Apollo 11 spacecraft and the first man on the moon. One of the most memorable quotes when you think about space exploration is what Neil Armstrong said on July 20th over the radio while on the moon. He said: "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind." -Neil Armstrong July 20, 1969