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About NASA
In 1958, the National Aeronautics and Space Act was passed, expressing that "It is the policy
of the United States that activities in space should be devoted to peaceful purposes for
the benefit of all mankind." As a result, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration
(NASA) was founded over 60 years ago for the purpose of leading the peaceful exploration
of space, making discoveries about the Earth, its solar system, and the universe.
Since then, NASA research has not only led to the exploration of space, it has made great
advances in aviation, helped to develop a commercial space industry, enriched the US
economy, created jobs, and strengthened national security.
The Apollo Program
It was after a series of earlier Mercury, Gemini and Apollo missions, as well as the work of
thousands of expert scientists, engineers and astronauts, that Neil Armstrong and Buzz
Aldrin landed the Lunar Module on July 20th, 1969 and walked on the Moon. The entire
program ran from 1961 to 1972 and set several human spaceflight milestones. Apollo 8 was
the first manned spacecraft to orbit another celestial body, while the final Apollo 17 mission
was the sixth Moon landing. The program was not only groundbreaking in terms of space
exploration, it catalyzed technological development in avionics, telecommunications and
computers.
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