Apollo 11 was an American spaceflight mission, the first to land astronauts on the Moon. Commander Neil Armstrong and Lunar Module Pilot Buzz Aldrin set the Apollo Lunar Module Eagle down on July 20, 1969, at 20:17 UTC. Armstrong stepped onto the lunar surface six hours later on July 21 at 02:56 UTC; Aldrin (pictured) joined him 19 minutes later. They spent about two and a quarter hours together outside the spacecraft, and collected 47.5 pounds (21.5 kg) of lunar material to bring back to Earth. While they were on the Moon's surface, Michael Collins flew the command module Columbia alone in lunar orbit. Armstrong's first step onto the lunar surface was broadcast on live TV to a worldwide audience. He described the event as "one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind". Armstrong and Aldrin spent 21.5 hours on the lunar surface before rejoining Columbia in lunar orbit. The astronauts returned to Earth and splashed down in the Pacific Ocean on July 24. (Full article...)