The footprints made by Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin are still on the Moon.Six hundred million people watched the first moon walk on TV.He earned the Eagle Scout badge in Boy Scouts.They landed in the Pacific Ocean and returned heroes. The three pilots arrived back on Earth on July 24th. While the lunar module, named the Eagle, was on the Moon, the third astronaut, Michael Collins, orbited the Moon in the command module. They collected Moon rocks and were on the Moon for over 21 hours. Buzz Aldrin also walked on the Moon during this trip. His famous words upon being the first man on the Moon were "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind". The Eagle has landed."Īfter landing, Armstrong was the first to leave the craft and walk on the Moon.
Upon landing Armstrong said "Houston, Tranquility Base here. The landing was successful and they had around 40 seconds of fuel remaining. This was not the plan and, if the landing took too long, would leave the crew short on fuel.
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There was one scary moment in the flight where Armstrong had to take over manual control of the landing. The Apollo 11 lander, the Eagle, on the MoonĪfter months of practice and preparation, the Apollo 11 spacecraft launched from Kennedy Space Center in Florida on July 16, 1969.
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He had to go through a series of harsh physical tests, but he passed and was soon part of the "new nine", or second group of nine NASA astronauts. He flew over 200 different types of aircraft during his career.Īrmstrong applied to become an astronaut and in September of 1962 he was selected for the NASA Astronaut Corps. It was a dangerous job, but very exciting. He flew all sorts of experimental planes testing them out to see how well they flew. At one point his plane was hit by enemy fire, but he was able to eject and was safely rescued.Īfter graduating from college, Armstrong became a test pilot. He fought in the Korean War where he flew fighters from aircraft carriers. During college, Neil was called up by the Navy and became a fighter pilot.
He later got his masters degree at the University of Southern California. At the age of 15, he got his pilot's license.Īrmstrong went to Purdue University and earned his bachelor's degree in aerospace engineering. From then on his goal was to become a pilot. His love for flying started at a young age when his father took him to an air show. Best known for: First man to walk on the Moon.