Key facts
- NASA successfully landed astronauts on the moon multiple times during the Apollo program.
- The descent stages of the Apollo lunar modules remain on the moon's surface.
- Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin were the first humans to land on the moon in 1969.
- NASA's Artemis program aims for future moon landings with private company landers.
- SpaceX and Blue Origin are developing landers for the Artemis program.
Decades after the historic Apollo missions, the descent stages of NASA's lunar landers remain on the moon's surface, serving as silent testaments to humanity's first steps on another world. These modules, which carried astronauts like Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin to the lunar surface, are now photographed by satellites, pinpointing the sites of these monumental achievements.
All six descent stages from the Apollo missions that successfully landed are still on the moon, clustered around the equator. The Apollo 11 lander, named Eagle, touched down in the Sea of Tranquility on July 20, 1969, marking the first time humans explored another celestial body. Armstrong's iconic words, "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind," echoed back to a captivated Earth.
While the descent stages remain, the ascent stages, used to return astronauts to lunar orbit, were discarded. Some, like the ascent stage of Apollo 11's Eagle, are speculated to still be in orbit. The ascent stage of Apollo 13, which famously became a lifeboat, was not used for a lunar landing.
Looking ahead, NASA's Artemis program aims to return humans to the moon, with private companies like SpaceX and Blue Origin developing new lunar landers. A docking test in low-Earth orbit is planned for next year, with a potential Artemis III moon landing as early as 2028. These new landers, like SpaceX's Starship, are significantly larger than their Apollo predecessors, requiring different approaches for astronauts to reach the surface.