I was watching Horizon on BBC4 last night it was about NASA and there ambitious mission - to land astronauts on the surface of Mars. I fondly remember a nine year old in 1969 excited about men landing on the moon. The nine year old was I.
Even at nine, I think I understood the Apollo 11 moon landings was something special, wall-to-wall TV building up to the landing but there would be no moon people rushing out welcoming the astronauts, a disappointment. In addition, the moon was not made of cheese.
This was a historic moment - the first time that human beings had walked on another "world/planet" and in a small way, I was involved. Experts on TV were talking moon colonies under some great dome because there was no air to breathe. That big round ball in the sky was beginning to look less welcoming and dangerous but a big part of me wanted to live on the moon.
I remember soaking up the images from the TV the world they left behind getting smaller while the moon got big until the Command Module settled into orbit around the moon. Allowed to stay up late to watch the landing there was no school being the summer holidays. The landing took place just after 10pm (GMT) and the debate was then about whether the astronauts would do the walk right away or sleep first, the decision was for them to sleep not helping me much as I was shuttled off to bed.
I was tucked up in bed when Neil Armstrong stepped out of the lunar lander onto the surface of the moon at the Sea of Tranquillity. To this day, I can remember watching the fuzzy, monochrome images coming from the moon. We had the BBC on in our house also ITV were showing intensive coverage along with the newspapers. it was the first time I watched any big event on television.
I can recall going outside that evening looking at the moon hoping to see the landing site and the astronauts (I was only nine after all!). Of course at moon landing begun a lifetime interest in space and late night watching ‘The Sky at Night’ and Patrick Moore.
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