As exclusive clubs go, walking on something other than planet Earth is pretty cool. So far, only 12 people have walked on the moon.
People have been to space before and since, but a very small, select group of people have already touched upon what it is essentially – a strange, albeit small, world.
Earth’s only natural satellite is located about 23,640 miles (380,500 km) away, which is just a stone’s throw away in terms of the galaxy.
Related: How NASA’s Artemis Lunar Landing Works for Astronauts (Opens in a new tab)
In 1962, US President John F Kennedy committed his country to placing an astronaut in space the moon with the famous wordsWe choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard.
The background to this ground-breaking achievement was the Cold War in the United States.”space race“The competition with the Soviet Union, which itself became the first country to lay down a man – Yuri Gagarin – in the space. Whoever reached the moon first would receive earnest bragging rights.
In 1969, the first march on the moon took place Neil Armstrong The first to make a fingerprint and utter the phrase “One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.”
closely followed by Edwin “Buzz” AldrinThe duo were the first 12 people to walk on the moon in what has been called Apollo missions.
Of all those who made the trip – all Americans – there were 24 people left, while 12 people remained aboard different spacecraft.
The List of astronauts Those who walked on the moon during the era of Apollo were:
- Neil Armstrong (Apollo 11)
- Buzz Aldrin (Apollo 11)
- Charles “Pete” Conrad (Apollo 12)
- Alan Bean (Apollo 12)
- Alan Shepard (Apollo 14)
- Edgar Mitchell (Apollo 14)
- David Scott (Apollo 15)
- James Irwin (Apollo 15)
- John Young (Apollo 16)
- Charles Duke (Apollo 16)
- Eugene Cernan (Apollo 17)
- Harrison Schmidt (Apollo 17)
What does walking on the moon look like?
One of the most amazing things about walking on the moon is the low gravity. The Moon’s gravity is about 1/6 of the Earth’s, which means you’ll weigh about 16% of what you’re doing here, and you’ll be able to jump about six times as much as you can a land.
When you walk on the moon, you will feel lighter and the sharp colors will be affected by the very thin atmosphere. Buzz Aldrin, the second man to walk on the moon, described the walk there as “not too far from a trampoline, but without the pulse and instability.”
He described the moon’s surface as a “wonderful ruin”, covered in powder and a gloomy sky. The ground seemed so small that it could be blocked by raising your thumb to it.
“My most vivid memory of the moon is beauty. The stark contrast between the brilliant gray of the moon and the blackness of space. The gray was so bright that it was almost white—a sharp separation between the surface and the horizon. The sun was always bright,” said Charlie Duke, Apollo 16 astronaut, So you haven’t seen stars or planets.” Forbes (Opens in a new tab).
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A foot on the moon has had symbolic significance, but walking isn’t very practical when you have a lot of ground to cover and not a lot of time.
So the invention of the Lunar Spacecraft (LRV) was a real game-changer for manned missions.
First used in 1971 by the Apollo 15, the electric vehicle was lightweight and designed for low-lying conditionsgravity empty moon It can be folded up for flight and unloaded once the crew has landed.
The vehicle can travel at 10 miles per hour (16 kilometers per hour) and has a range of about 55 miles (89 km).
Future missions to the moon
It’s been a long time since humans went to the moon, but NASA Artemis program It was designed to bring humans back to the moon and also to land the first woman and first people of color on the moon. It will partner with commercial and international organizations to create a permanent base on the Moon, which it will use as a springboard for a final mission to Mars.
NASA’s initial goal was to reach the moon again by 2024, but the date has been pushed back to no more than 2025.
Additional Resources
For more information on landing on the moon, check out “The Apollo Legacy: Perspectives on the Moon Landing (Opens in a new tab)By Roger de Launius andEarth Rising: How Man Seen Earth for the First Time (Opens in a new tab)Written by Robert Paul.
index
- NASAWho walked on the moon? (Opens in a new tab)July 2020.
- Sarah Love”Apollo 11 mission overview (Opens in a new tab)NASA, January 2022.
- National Air and Space Museum”Apollo 11 (Opens in a new tab)‘, accessed September 2022.
- European Space Agency,”Moon exploration – European Space Agency missions (Opens in a new tab)‘, accessed September 2022.
- NASAArtemis (Opens in a new tab)‘, accessed September 2022.
- NASAApollo program‘, accessed September 2022.
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