United States Diplomatic Mission to Germany

Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin stands on the moon, July 20, 1969 (© NASA)

In Focus: 40th Anniversary of First Moon Landing

On July 20, Apollo 11 was the first manned mission to land on the Moon. The first steps by humans on another planetary body were taken by Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin 40 years ago. The astronauts also returned to Earth the first samples from another planetary body.

President Obama Highlights Apollo Technologies (On April 26, 2009, National Academy of Science) - "The Apollo program produced technologies that have improved kidney dialysis and water purification systems; sensors to test for hazardous gasses; energy-saving building materials; fire-resistant fabrics used by firefighters and soldiers. More broadly, the enormous investment in that era -- in science and technology, in education and research funding -- produced a great outpouring of curiosity and creativity, the benefits of which have been incalculable."

Source: Remarks by the President at the National Academy of Sciences Annual Meeting

„Space exploration began when people on Earth looked to the heavens and began documenting the motions of stars and planets. Today, 12 men have walked on the moon, and more than 80 countries have worked together to send robotic spacecraft to nearly all planets of our solar system. At the dawn of a new space age, the world's spacefarers are collaborating to enable achievements that are beyond the financial or technical capability of any one nation."

Source: Nations in Space (July 2008)

Blogs at America.gov: Rumors, Myths and Fabrications
Mythbusters Debunk Alleged Moon Landing Hoax (By Todd Leventhal, August 28, 2008): The popular Discovery Channel program "Mythbusters" debunked allegations that the U.S. Moon landings were faked, in an episode last summer. It pointed out that Apollo astronauts left several retro-reflectors on the Moon, which have been "pinched" with powerful lasers from Earth, sending a signal back. The mythbusters conducted elaborate experiments to debunk popular claims by hoax believers. An example: Films of a flag flapping on the Moon mean there must have been wind blowing, but there's no atmosphere on the Moon. - The mythbusters placed a replica American flag in a vacuum chamber, to test if a flag could flap in an environment with no atmosphere. They found that moving the flag's staff, as the astronauts did when they planted it in lunar soil, caused the flag to flap vigorously, as if it were being blown by a breeze.

Last updated: July 14, 2009

About the USA

About the USA is a digital collection of background resources on American society, culture, and political processes. In addition to featuring selected websites, it provides access to documents in full text format (E-Texts) on topics ranging from the history of German-American relations, government and politics to travel, holidays and sports. About the USA is maintained by the Information Resource Centers/U.S. Diplomatic Mission to Germany. usa.usembassy.de