apollo11

Apollo 11 achieved its mission of being the first manned vehicle to perform a lunar landing and return home safely.

The launch vehicle and spacecraft (LM-5, named the Eagle) arrived at Pad 39-A six days before the flight. A successful countdown test ending on July 3 showed the readiness of machines, systems, and people. The crew for Apollo 11, all of whom had already flown in space during the Gemini program, had been intensively training as a team for many months. Neil Armstrong was the Commander; Edwin E. (�Buzz�) Aldrin Jr. the Lunar Module Pilot; and Michael Collins the Command Module Pilot. James Lovell was the backup commander; Fred Haise the Lunar Module Pilot; and William A. Anders the backup Command Module Pilot. There weren�t any delays before the launch on July 16, 1969 at 9:32 am EDT from Kennedy Space Center, FL.

They made thirty orbits and reached a maximum altitude of 389, 645 km. Apollo 11 landed on the moon at a spot called the Sea of Tranquility on July 20 at 4:17 p.m. EDT and Neil Armstrong first set foot on the moon at 10:56 p.m. EDT. They stayed on the lunar surface for twenty-one hours and were in lunar orbit for five hours. The Apollo 11 crew stayed in Space for eight days, three hours, eighteen minutes, and thirty-five seconds. Splashdown (the return landing) took place on July 24, 1969 at 12:50 p.m. EDT. The entire crew was on board the U.S.S Hornet at 1:53 p.m. EDT and the spacecraft was aboard at 3:50 pm.

This flight was one of the most historical events in NASA�s history. It also brought the United States up to the number one spot in the Space Race, finally giving Russia some competition.