Apollo 11 - Moon Landing 50th Anniversary

It's been a half-century since humans first landed on the moon. On 20 July 1969, the Eagle module from Apollo 11 landed at Tranquility Base. Hours later, at 21:56 CT (02:56 GMT), Neil Armstrong made history by becoming the first mortal to step on the Moon, famously noting the time with the phrase: “That’s one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.” 

Taken only months before, on January 10, 1969, the day after NASA announced their names as the prime crew for the lunar landing mission. From left to right are Lunar Module Pilot Buzz Aldrin, Commander Neil Armstrong, and Command Module Pilot Michael Collins. 

Beneath, are some photos of the historic Apollo 11 mission, on the 50th anniversary of that giant leap. 

A portrait of the Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin, taken by his fellow astronaut Neil Armstrong, standing on the lunar surface on July 20, 1969. 

On July 16, 1969, Apollo 11 astronauts (from left) Buzz Aldrin, Michael Collins, and Neil Armstrong head for the van that will take the crew to the rocket for launch to the moon at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

The 111-meter Saturn V rocket carrying the Apollo 11 mission launches from Kennedy Space Center in Florida on July 16, 1969.  

Members of the Kennedy Space Center government-industry team rise from their consoles within the Launch Control Center to watch the Apollo 11 liftoff through the large windows at the back of the firing room. 

Buzz Aldrin stands before the U.S. flag planted on the landing site. If you look closely, you can see Aldrin's face through the visor, as he turns his head to look at Armstrong. 

The plaque left on the moon, attached to a strut on the lunar module.

It reads: "Here men from the planet Earth first set foot upon the Moon, July 1969, A.D. We came in peace for all mankind." 

A close-up view of Buzz Aldrin as he walks on the moon, with a reflected view of the lunar module and his photographer, Neil Armstrong, visible in Buzz's visor. 

A view of Earth in the black sky above the lunar module. 

A photograph of the lunar module by Armstrong, taken from about 150 feet away.

The crew prepares to depart the moon, leaving the lunar module behind, with Earth visible above the horizon. 

On the way home, a look back at the moon, a small part of it newly marked by human bootprints.

On July 24, 1969, the three Apollo 11 astronauts successfully splashed down in the Pacific Ocean. Here, the crew and a U.S. Navy underwater-demolition-team swimmer await pickup by a helicopter.

The Apollo 11 astronauts, inside a Mobile Quarantine Facility aboard the USS Hornet, listen to President Richard Nixon as he welcomes them back to Earth and for a job well done, on July 25, 1969. 

On August 13, 1969,  New York City, cheering the Apollo 11 astronauts en route to the United Nations. Sitting high in the open car are (from left) Buzz Aldrin, Michael Collins, and Neil Armstrong.