When did humans first land on the Moon?
Humans first landed on the Moon on July 20, 1969, when Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin touched down while Michael Collins orbited above in the command module.
- Home
- Fact categories
- Apollo Facts
Apollo Facts
Apollo facts and facts about apollos.
16 facts on this shelf
How many people watched the first Moon landing on TV?
An estimated 600 million people around the world watched the Apollo 11 Moon landing on TV, one of the largest audiences in history at the time.
How long will the astronauts' footprints last on the Moon?
Because the Moon has no wind or water to erode them, the footprints left by Apollo astronauts could last for millions of years.
How powerful was the Apollo 11 computer?
The Apollo Guidance Computer that helped land Apollo 11 had only about 4 kilobytes of erasable memory, millions of times less than a modern smartphone.
How close did Apollo 11 come to running out of fuel?
Neil Armstrong had to steer the lunar module past a boulder-filled crater by hand, and Apollo 11 landed with less than a minute of descent fuel to spare.
What message did Apollo 11 leave on the Moon?
Apollo 11 left a plaque on the Moon stating that the astronauts "came in peace for all mankind," signed by the three astronauts and President Richard Nixon.
How many people have walked on the Moon?
Only 12 people have ever walked on the Moon, all of them American astronauts on Apollo missions between 1969 and 1972. Gene Cernan was the last to leave.
What speech did Nixon have ready in case Apollo 11 failed?
President Nixon had a speech ready called "In Event of Moon Disaster," written by speechwriter William Safire in case the Apollo 11 astronauts got stranded on the Moon.
Has a piece of the Wright Flyer been to other worlds?
Pieces of the original Wright Flyer have traveled to the Moon on Apollo 11 and to Mars on NASA's Ingenuity helicopter.
What is Amateur Night at the Apollo?
Harlem's Apollo Theater Amateur Night helped launch the careers of many R&B stars.
What does Moon dust smell like?
Apollo astronauts said Moon dust smelled like spent gunpowder.
Did Apollo leave mirrors on the Moon?
Apollo astronauts left mirrors on the Moon that scientists still bounce lasers off to measure its distance.
What are Moon trees?
"Moon trees" were grown from seeds that orbited the Moon on Apollo 14.
Has a piece of the Wright Flyer been to space?
A piece of the original Wright Flyer went to the Moon on Apollo 11 in 1969, and another flew to Mars on NASA's Ingenuity helicopter in 2021.
How does a smartphone compare to the Apollo computer?
The Apollo Guidance Computer that helped land astronauts on the Moon had only about 4 KB of RAM, while a modern smartphone has millions of times more memory.
Did astronauts train near Bend?
Apollo astronauts trained near Bend because the volcanic landscape resembles the Moon.