Apollo 11, the spaceflight that first landed humans on the Moon was launched on July 16, 1969. It was launched from NASA's Kennedy Space Center with NASA astronauts Neil Armstrong, Dr Edwin 'Buzz' Aldrin and Dr Michael Collins. They landed on the Moon's surface four days later on July 20. As today marks the 51st anniversary of the historic event that marked a significant leap for mankind, NASA has taken to Twitter with a video of Apollo 11's launch from Earth. 13 Spectacular Facts About NASA’s First Moon Mission and Apollo 11.

The American crew onboard landed the Apollo Lunar Module Eagle on July 20, 1969, at 20:17 UTC. Neil Armstrong was the first human to walk on the Moon to deliver his speech to the millions watching back at home. An estimated 650 million people watched Armstrong's speech e as he took "... one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind." He was joined by Buzz Aldrin 19 minutes later and the duo spent two-and-a-quarter hours exploring the Tranquility Base, collecting more than 20kg of rock samples and planted the US flag into the surface to mark the nation's achievement. Apollo 11 Mission Hero Buzz Aldrin Turns 90, Here Are Some Facts About Him.

Apollo 11's Launch From NASA's Kennedy Space Center:

Aldrin, one of them recently took to Twitter with pictures of the mission saying, "Today represents a truly important day in the history of humankind - we lifted off from Earth on #Apollo11 to a place of Magnificent Desolation - the Moon. It was the journey of a lifetime, a mission of eternal consequence for science, exploration, and human achievement."

Dr. Buzz Aldrin Remembers Apollo 11 Mission:

The success of Apollo 11 was the stepping stone for future space exploration for humankind. The astronauts returned home on July 21, 1969, 17:54:00 UTC. Apollo 11 was the ninth endeavour in the 14-mission Apollo moonshot program also arguably believed to be NASA's most dangerous and ambitious mission ever.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 17, 2020 09:14 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).