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ORBONIX · SPACE MISSIONS

APOLLO

The legendary lunar exploration program that sent humans to the Moon and changed our understanding of space forever.
Apollo 11 Saturn V launch
1961–1972
PROGRAM DURATION
6
MOON LANDINGS
12
ASTRONAUTS ON THE MOON
24
ASTRONAUTS WHO FLEW TO THE MOON
APOLLO 11
FIRST CREWED MOON LANDING
SATURN V
LAUNCH VEHICLE
THE JOURNEY TO THE MOON
The Apollo program was a series of human spaceflight missions conducted by NASA between 1961 and 1972. Its primary goal was to land humans on the Moon and return them safely to Earth. Apollo 11 achieved the historic first crewed Moon landing on July 20, 1969, when Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin walked on the lunar surface while Michael Collins remained in lunar orbit. The Apollo missions returned hundreds of kilograms of lunar rocks and soil to Earth, allowing scientists to study the Moon in unprecedented detail. Apollo 13 demonstrated another side of space exploration. After an oxygen tank explosion damaged the spacecraft, the crew survived a dangerous journey back to Earth. The final lunar mission, Apollo 17, ended in December 1972 and remains the most recent time humans have walked on the Moon.
APOLLO HIGHLIGHTS
APOLLO 11
On July 20, 1969, Apollo 11 became the first mission to land humans on the Moon.
MOON ROCKS
The Apollo missions brought back approximately 382 kilograms of lunar rocks, soil and other samples.
SATURN V
The enormous Saturn V rocket carried Apollo spacecraft from Earth toward the Moon.
DID YOU KNOW?
Apollo 11 travelled approximately 384,000 km from Earth to the Moon before humans took their first steps on another world.
IMAGE: NASA / APOLLO 11
ORBONIX · SPACE MISSIONS