Updated With Events Calendar: Apollo Mission Control Room and the 50th Anniversary of the First Astronauts Who Set Foot on the Moon: "One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind"

On July 20, 1969, American astronauts Neil Armstrong and Edwin Aldrin set foot on the lunar surface – the first men on the moon. The U.S. space agency, NASA, is celebrating the 50th anniversary of this historic event in style – by restoring and reopening the control room that handled the historic Apollo 11 mission. Today it is a museum, but it looks every bit alive and real as it did in 1969, as though engineers and scientists just stepped away for a moment. Lesia Bakalets visited the control room. Anna Rice narrates her story.

Original Mission Video as aired in July 1969 depicting the Apollo 11 astronauts conducting several tasks during extravehicular activity (EVA) operations on the surface of the moon. The EVA lasted approximately 2.5 hours with all scientific activities being completed satisfactorily. The Apollo 11 (EVA) began at 10:39:33 p.m. EDT on July 20, 1969 when Astronaut Neil Armstrong emerged from the spacecraft first. While descending, he released the Modularized Equipment Stowage Assembly on the Lunar Module's descent stage. A camera on this module provided live television coverage of man's first step on the Moon. On this, their one and only EVA, the astronauts had a great deal to do in a short time. During this first visit to the Moon, the astronauts remained within about 100 meters of the lunar module, collected about 47 pounds of samples, and deployed four experiments. After spending approximately 2 hours and 31 minutes on the surface, the astronauts ended the EVA at 1:11:13 a.m. EDT on July 21.

https://youtu.be/S9HdPi9Ikhk

New York Times and landing conversation between astronauts and mission control

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/07/18/science/apollo-11-moon-landing-photos-ul.html?em_pos=large&ref=headline&te=1&nl=science-times&emc=edit_sc_20190720?campaign_id=34&instance_id=11047&segment_id=15403&user_id=65c3cc2ad8eb039984544302b401d3c6&regi_id=4010090edit_sc_20190720

Apollo 11’s 50th anniversary calendar

BY DEBRA WERNER|JULY 15, 2019

Get a head start on participating in the activities being planned by cities, agencies and museums across the U.S. and in other countries.

Below is what we’ve learned so far. Stay on top of developments here. If you have an event to add to the online list, contact Debra Werner at werner.debra@gmail.com.

THROUGH JULY 2019

ALAMEDA, CALIFORNIA

Splashdown 50th Anniversary Celebration: Explore the history of the space race and the USS Hornet, the ship that recovered Apollo 11 astronauts after splashdown.

THROUGH JULY 2019

FLAGSTAFF, ARIZONA

Lunar Legacy lectures on the scientific and cultural impacts of the moon landing, in the town where Buzz Aldrin, Neil Armstrong and Michael Collins trained for moon walks. Second Wednesday of each month.
Coconino Community College, Lone Tree Campus

THROUGH JULY 2019

PORTLAND, OREGON

Apollo 11: 50th Anniversary Celebration — Meet scientists, launch rockets, learn about constellations and watch space movies at a series of events at the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry.