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When was the first moon landing?

Part of HistoryEvents within living memoryYear 1Year 2

Who was the first person to walk on the Moon?

Astronauts in space shuttle.

  • After World War Two ended, the USA and the USSR (Russia) started competing with each other to explore space.

  • In 1969 Neil Armstrong became the first person to walk on the Moon.

  • The Mission was called Apollo 11.

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Watch: Astronaut Neil Armstrong walks on the moon.

Watch some of the highlights from Neil Armstrong's mission to the Moon (Credit: NASA).

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What was Apollo 11?

Rocket graphic
  • President John F. Kennedy wanted to put a man on the moon.
  • Apollo 11 was the name of the mission that landed on the Moon in July 1969.
  • It used Saturn rockets to launch, made by Wernher von Braun.
Rocket graphic
Neil Armstrong with his space suit and helmet.
Neil Armstrong with his space suit and helmet.
  • The first person to walk on the Moon was Neil Armstrong.
  • The second person was Buzz Aldrin.
  • They spent 2 hours 31 minutes walking on the surface of the Moon.
  • Armstrong and Aldrin took photographs and sent live television pictures back to earth.
  • As Neil Armstrong stepped onto the Moon, he said, “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.”
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What happened after Apollo 11?

Astronaut on the moon looking at the earth.
  • There were five more landings on the Moon after Apollo 11.
  • The last landing on the Moon was in 1972 (Apollo 17).
  • NASA began a Space Shuttle programme in 1972
  • In 1998 the International Space Station was launched.
Astronaut on the moon looking at the earth.
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Did you know?

Space vehicle on moon.
  • Only 12 people have ever walked on the Moon.
  • It would take you over nine years to walk to the Moon.
  • A typical tablet or mobile phone has many more times the memory than the computers that put the Apollo 11 on the Moon.
  • In 1957 the USSR sent a dog called Laika into space, in Sputnik 2.
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Activity: Quiz – Moon landings

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