It was 1961. John F. Kennedy was the President of the U.S. He wanted to put a man on the Moon. The U.S. had just started trying to put people in space. Was NASA ready to go to the Moon? The President and NASA knew they could do it. They were ready to put a man on the Moon. Apollo 11's job was to land two men on the Moon. They also had to come back to Earth safely.
Image above: Astronauts Neil Armstrong, Mike Collins, and Buzz Aldrin. Credit: NASA
Apollo 11 blasted off on July 16, 1969. Neil Armstrong, Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin and Michael Collins were the astronauts on Apollo 11.
Four days later, Armstrong and Aldrin landed on the Moon. They went down to the Moon on the Lunar Module. It was called the Eagle. Collins stayed in orbit. He did experiments and took pictures.
On July 20, Neil Armstrong became the first man to step on the Moon. He and Aldrin walked around for three hours. They did experiments. They picked up bits of Moon dirt and rocks.
Image above: The sign on the moon says, "Here men from the planet Earth first set foot upon the Moon July 1969, A.D. We came in peace for all mankind." Credit: NASA
They put a U.S. flag on the Moon. They even left a sign on the Moon.
The two astronauts went back to orbit. On July 24, 1969, all three astronauts came back to Earth safely.
President Kennedy's wish came true. It took less than 10 years. Man had walked on the Moon.
