On May 25, 1961, President John F. Kennedy announced the goal of sending astronauts to the moon before the end of the decade. That challenge was met in 1969 when the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) landed the first manned spacecraft on the moon.
NASA's Apollo Program , which ran from 1968 to 1972, consisted of a series of 17 manned flights with the goal of landing on the moon. The first 10 missions were used to test various elements of what a lunar landing mission was expected to be like. Launched on July 16, 1969, Apollo 11 and its crew of three astronauts traveled to the moon. On July 20, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin boarded a landing craft and descended to the surface, becoming the first to ever do so. Armstrong and Aldrin remained on the moon for just over 21 hours, of which two and a half were spent outside the spacecraft. During this time they set up several experiments and collected samples for later study. After reuniting with their fellow astronaut, Michael Collins, in orbit, the three returned to Earth, splashing down in the Pacific Ocean on July 24.
The Apollo Program continued with an additional six missions (Apollo 12-17). Except for Apollo 13, which suffered a mechanical failure that forced its return, each mission remained on the moon for consecutively longer periods of time.
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