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| July 20, 1969 |
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"Giant Leap for Mankind"
Life
Neil Armstrong's booted foot, pressed firmly in the lunar soil, symbolized the stunning success of man's highest adventure--the achievement, with the first moon step on the evening of July 20, 1969, of the ambitious goal set by President John F. Kennedy e ight years earlier. This special edition of LIFE is a record of that historic accomplishment, brought about by the high courage of the Apollo 11 astronauts and the superb technical precision of the tens of thousands who supported them. Along with color ph otographs of mankind's two-and-a-quarter-hour walk on the moon are detailed biographical portraits of Armstrong. Edwin Aldrin and Michael Collins, and a report on the scientific experiments now being conducted on the lunar samples they brought home. Here also is a comprehensive illustrated history of manned space exploration from Yuri Gagarin's first single orbit around the earth in 1961 to the present, and a picture account--including revealing glimpses of the astronauts' families during the eight days f rom lift-off to splashdown--of the world's expectancy, excitement and joy during the tense and triumphant moments of Apollo 11's flight from Pad 39A to the Sea of Tranquility.
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