On July 20, 1969, Neil Armstrong became the
first human being to set foot on the Moon. He was the
commander of the Apollo 11 lunar module, and was
accompanied by Edwin E. Aldrin. His first words after
stepping on the moon were, "That's one small step for a
man, one giant leap for mankind." This event was
televised to Earth and seen by millions!
Armstrong was born in Ohio in 1930. Armstrong was a Navy
pilot from 1949 to 1952. He flew fighter planes in the
Korean War. After the war, he left the Navy and got a
college degree in aeronautical engineering. In 1955, he
became a test pilot for high-performance aircraft. In
1962, he was selected by NASA to become an astronaut.
His first space flight in 1966 was nearly a disaster. He
was in the first U. S. emergency in space with his
partner David Scott, during their Gemini 8 mission. Their
spacecraft spun wildly out of control when one of their
thruster rockets malfunctioned. They got the spacecraft
under control again, but had to return to Earth after
only seven orbits because they had used up most of their
fuel.
In 1968, he was chosen, along with Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin
and Michael Collins, to be a member of the Apollo 11
mission,. It would be the first in history to attempt a
manned landing on the Moon. Apollo 11 left Cape
Canaveral, Florida on July 16, 1969, boosted by the giant
Saturn V rocket. Four days later, it went into orbit
around the Moon. The lunar module Eagle, with Armstrong
and Aldrin inside, separated from the command module and
descended to the surface of the Moon. Their target was a
flat area called the Sea of Tranquility.
There were large boulders in the landing area, and pilot
Armstrong had to use up most of the lunar module's fuel
to get into position to make a safe landing. After
touching down, Armstrong reported their success with the
words: "Tranquility Base here...the Eagle has landed."
Several hours later, at 10:56 PM, Eastern Standard Time,
Armstrong became the first man ever to walk on the
surface of the Moon. Aldrin followed him about fifteen
minutes later.
The two astronauts set up an American flag, collected
rock samples, and set up several scientific experiments
and instruments on the lunar surface. They stayed out for
about two and a half hours. The next day, they left the
Moon and rejoined Collins in the command module. The
three astronauts returned home on July 24 and were hailed
as heroes.
After going to the Moon, Neil Armstrong resigned from the
astronaut program in 1970. From 1971 to 1979 he served as
an engineering professor at the University of Cincinnati.
In 1980 he became chairman of Cardwell International, a
supplier of oil-drilling equipment. In 1986 Armstrong
became cochairman of the presidential commission
investigating the explosion of space shuttle
Challenger.
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