One Giant Leap: The Story of the Moon Landing

A Rocky Start

In the early 1960s, the Soviets sent multiple spacecraft to the moon. Some crashed onto the surface; others flew around to the moon's dark side and snapped the first-ever photographs. The Soviets then took even greater strides. They sent cosmonauts into space, including Valentina Tereshkova, the first woman and civilian to travel beyond Earth’s atmosphere.

The Soviets were winning the space race, but their plans to put a man on the moon began to hit roadblocks in 1963. The Soviet Union did not have a centralised organisation like NASA. This meant that funding was spread across not just one mission but many, limiting the focus of the moon mission. 

In the United States, President Kennedy delivered rousing speeches about space travel. But it seemed that he was only paying lip service. Indeed, in one meeting with his advisors and NASA administrator, James Webb, Kennedy said point-blank, “I’m not interested in space.” He even proposed approaching the Soviets—the enemy—about a joint moon mission. Something that never got off the ground.

President Kennedy’s Death Inspires the American Public

Sadly, not long after this meeting, John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas. Some believe that, in a roundabout way, the tragic death of President Kennedy actually salvaged America’s missions in space. In private, he may have cooled on the idea. However, due to his fervent public pronouncements in 1961 and 1962, the race to the Moon was now seen as a way to honour the President’s memory. America was set on getting to the Moon by the end of the decade… at any cost.

The Moon Landing

On July 20th, 1969, American astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed on the moon’s surface in a lunar module called the Eagle. Above them, orbiting the Earth’s atmosphere, was Michael Collins. Before the launch, debate about who would be the first person to set foot on the Moon had gone back and forth. Buzz Aldrin was adamant that he should be the first, arguing that the captain was supposed to stay with the ship and leave last.

But Neil said: “I'm going to go out first. I'm the commander.”

Some would say that that argument was settled by the fact that the door opened in such a way that Buzz was behind it, and it made more sense for Neil to go out first.

Robert Godwin, historian of the space race

Six hundred million people worldwide listened on their radios or watched their black and white televisions in awe as Neil Armstrong descended the module’s ladder.

His boots touched the rocky surface, and he uttered the immortal words: “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.”

Minutes later, Buzz Aldrin followed him. They took photographs, collected rock samples and planted the American flag on the moon’s surface - signalling a decisive victory for the Americans.

The crew of Apollo 11 returned to Earth two weeks later as global heroes. This was a human, not just a national, achievement.