Mission Summary

          Apollo 11 was launched from Cape Kennedy on July 16, 1969.  After two hours and thirty-three minutes of orbit around earth, the rockets were turned on again this time to escape earth’s gravity and head for the moon. 

          75 hours and 50 minutes into the flight, Apollo 11 was already orbiting the moon.  Every time Apollo 11 circled the moon, its communication was lost with earth because it was on the far side of the moon. 

The Lunar module, with Armstrong and Aldrin was unlocked from the control and service modules at 100:14 Ground elapsed time to land on the moon.  Touchdown happened at 102:45 Ground elapsed time.  The Lunar module was immediately prepared for takeoff as a safety measure. 

Armstrong got on the lunar surface first, collecting samples of the moon ground, just in case an early takeoff was needed.  Aldrin then got on the ground and did the planned activities such as performing solar wind experiments, taking panoramic photos, and collecting more lunar material.  Both astronauts had to get back on the Lunar Module after about 2 hrs of exploration on the moon. The ascent happened at 124:22 Ground Elapsed Time.  That time was also 21 hours and 36 minutes after the lunar landing.  The Command Module entered the atmosphere of earth at 11,032 meters per second and landed in the Pacific Ocean