Apollo 11 astronaut Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin poses with the US flag planted on the Sea of Tranquility. If you look closely, you can see Aldrin’s face through his helmet visor.
Apollo 11 astronaut Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin poses with the US flag planted on the Sea of Tranquility. If you look closely, you can see Aldrin’s face through his helmet visor.
Rare Views of the Moon, as Seen by Apollo Astronauts
Explore a collection of vintage Apollo photos from NASA to commemorate 48 years since the first Moon landing.
ByShaena Montanari
Published July 20, 2017
In one of the greatest technological feats of human history, on July 20, 1969, two men landed on the surface of the Moon to explore it’s “magnificent desolation.”
In 1971, President Richard Nixon proclaimed July 20 National Moon Walk Day to commemorate the anniversary of Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin setting foot outside our planet for the first time after their journey on Apollo 11 with pilot Michael Collins.
Even though 48 years have passed since this historic event, images from the Apollo missions continue to captivate new generations of space enthusiasts, thanks in part to Kipp Teague, a volunteer historian who runs the Project Apollo Archive. A few years ago, he uploaded his stash of high resolution scans to a Flickr page for everyone to enjoy.
After Apollo 11, five additional missions brought ten more astronauts to the surface of the Moon over the next three years. This Moon Day, enjoy these 32 spectacular photos showing the highlights of the Apollo missions.
