P. Pilgrim
This week 57 years ago the world watched as humans landed on the Moon for the first time. The mission was called Apollo 11 and it was carried out by NASA and marked one of the greatest achievements in human history. The Apollo 11 mission had three American astronauts Neil Armstrong, who was the Commander, Buzz Aldrin, he was the Lunar Module Pilot and Michael Collins was the Command Module Pilot.
The journey to the moon began on July 16, 1969, when a giant Saturn V rocket lifted off from Kennedy Space Centre in Florida, USA. About 650 million people watched on television as the spacecraft began its four-day journey to the Moon. This was the largest live audience in history at the time. After reaching space, the astronauts travelled about 384,400 km to the Moon. A return journey of nearly 1.53 million km during the entire mission. On 20TH July, Armstrong and Aldrin climbed into the lunar module, named Eagle, while Collins remained in orbit around the moon in the command module. As Eagle descended, Armstrong noticed that the computer was guiding them toward a rocky area. Taking manual control, he carefully searched for a safer landing spot. With only seconds of fuel remaining, he landed successfully. He radioed back to Earth “Houston, Tranquillity Base here. The Eagle has landed.” Cheers erupted in Mission Control as the landing was confirmed. Several hours later, Armstrong climbed down the ladder of the Eagle. On 21st July 1969 he placed his left foot on the Moon and said the famous words “That’s one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.” Although the radio transmission made the word “a” difficult to hear, Armstrong later said he intended to include it. He became the first human ever to walk on the Moon. Neil Armstrong’s footprints are still on the Moon because there is no wind or rain to erase them. The Moon has an extremely thin exosphere, so there is no breathable air or weather like on Earth.
About 20 minutes later, Buzz Aldrin joined Armstrong on the lunar surface. Aldrin described the landscape as “Magnificent desolation.” The two astronauts spent about 2½ hours outside the spacecraft. They collected 21.5 kg of Moon rocks and soil, these Moon rocks were brought back by Apollo 11 and are still studied by scientists today. The men set up scientific experiments, took photographs, planted the United States flag and left behind a plaque that read “We came in peace for all mankind.” Meanwhile, Michael Collins continued orbiting the Moon alone, waiting for their return. After completing their work, Armstrong and Aldrin blasted off from the Moon and reunited with Collins in lunar orbit. The crew then began the journey back to Earth arriving on 24th July. The Apollo 11 splashed down safely in the Pacific Ocean, where they were recovered by the U.S. Navy. Of the three Buzz Aldrin is the only one still alive, he is 96 years old and remains active in space advocacy.
The moon is a celestial body which orbits the earth so is not classed as a planet but a satellite. Although the moon doesn’t produce its own light, it appears bright because it reflects the light of the sun. The book of Psalms tells us in Psalm 89 verse 37 “It shall be established for ever as the moon, and as a faithful witness in heaven.” This is in reference to the interests of Christ and his people. For though the moon has its spots, and is changeable, sometimes it is in the full moon, and sometimes in the decline, yet the moon always is, and always continues, and ever will be. So is Christ and his church established for ever. The moon does not always appear to be in the same place, but is removed from one country to another; yet it always is somewhere, from the wilderness to the mountain top. Thus it is a faithful witness in heaven of the wisdom, power, goodness and everlasting endurance of the Creator.
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