National Moon Day: Why the US celebrates the day on July 20

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Aldrin and Armstrong made the first crewed landing on the lunar surface, while Collins flew the Apollo 11 command module Columbia around the moon.

Six hours after landing on the moon, Armstrong stepped onto the lunar surface. He was followed by Aldrin. The two astronauts spent more than 21 hours on the lunar surface and collected 21.5 kg of lunar material, which was brought back to the Earth for research. They named the site on the lunar surface “Tranquility Base”.

Neil Armstrong’s first words from the moon were: “That one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.”

Armstrong, Aldrin and Collins returned to Earth on July 24.

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In 1971, then US President Richard Nixon proclaimed July 20 as National Moon Day to honour the anniversary of man's first moon landing.

The mission opened up the scope for new explorations and possibilities in space not just by the US but the world. Buoyed by the success of Apollo 11, NASA also stepped up its efforts for more such missions.

Space enthusiasts observe Moon Day by visiting the planetariums and talking about the Moon landing of 1969.