First Manned Flight to Land on the Moon

July 16, 1969

Apollo 11 is launched, landing on the Moon four days later. Neil Armstrong became the first person to step onto the lunar surface six hours after landing on July 21, with Buzz Aldrin following him shortly thereafter. Aldrin would later joke that while Armstrong was the first man to walk on the Moon, he was the first to piss his pants on the Moon. They also left behind a laser reflector which was used to prove the Moon was 131.2 feet farther away than previously believed.