On this night in science
The first people to travel to the Moon
December 21, 1968
On this day in 1968, astronauts Frank Borman, Jim Lovell and Bill Anders launched on Apollo 8 and became the first people ever to leave the Earth behind and travel to the Moon. Three days later they went into orbit around it, the first humans to see its far side with their own eyes.
Why it mattered
No one had ever gone far enough to see the whole Earth hanging in space before. Their trip opened the way for the Moon landings the next year.
Wonder together
What do you think it felt like to watch the Earth get smaller and smaller out the window?
Where this comes from