Today, Saturday, July 20, marks exactly 50 years since a human being stepped on the moon for the first time.
On July 20, 1969, Neil Armstrong and Edwin Aldrin stepped off the Apollo 11 lunar module and became the first people to set foot on a celestial body in our solar system.
The Apollo 11 mission took these two astronauts and Michael Collins (who stayed orbiting the moon in the command module while the other two installed the lunar experiments) and was the result of years of work and the collaboration of some 400,000 people.
For many people, landing on the moon is undoubtedly the greatest achievement of human beings in all of history.
As London is the capital of a country that loves and celebrates history, events are always scheduled here in the city to commemorate almost all of the most historical moments in hundreds of countries around the world.
And the anniversary of the moon landing was not going to be the exception, so dozens of events have been scheduled to commemorate this great historical moment.
The Natural History Museum has installed a giant moon (almost full-scale!) inside its beautiful building in South Kensington, thanks to which the surface of our natural satellite can be studied in detail. The museum has also scheduled several moon-related events including talks and even yoga classes under the giant moon.
The Science Museum has scheduled a 3-month space festival. At the festival there will be talks, family events, a screening of the new Apollo 11 documentary and an interactive experience about the Apollo 11 mission. In addition, the museum has a huge room dedicated to space exploration and in the room you can see a replica of the Apollo 11 lunar module and the command module of the original Apollo 10!
The National Maritime Museum opened its new exhibition on the moon (The Moon) yesterday and it is the largest exhibition of its kind in Europe dedicated to this celestial body.
The Royal Greenwich Observatory has organized several events to commemorate this date, including the public will have the opportunity to see the moon through large telescopes.
A Moon Festival has been scheduled in Greenwich and Woolwich (2 neighborhoods southeast of London). The festival lasts a week and features many events, including a talk by Margaret Atwood!
The Map House, a gallery specializing in cartography has organized a large exhibition on maps and prints of the moon.
The new Apollo 11 documentary is being shown in several cinemas in the city.
So in London you have many options to learn about and enjoy the moon and to celebrate one of the most important moments in our history.
More information:
For more information about the different moon events that will take place here in London, below we leave you the links of the different institutions that we have mentioned in the article.
-Museum of the Moon at the Natural History Museum: https://www.nhm.ac.uk/visit/exhibitions/museum-of-the-moon.html
-Summer of Space at the Science Museum: https://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/see-and-do/summer-of-space
-Moon exhibition at the Maritime Museum: https://www.rmg.co.uk/whats-on/moon-exhibition
-Events at Greenwich Observatory: https://www.rmg.co.uk/royal-observatory
-Woolwich and Greenwich Moon Festival: https://moonfestival.co.uk/
-Exhibition of maps and cartography of the moon: https://blog.themaphouse.com/2019/06/04/the-mapping-of-the-moon-1669-1969/
-The new documentary Apollo 11 It is being screened in several cinemas in the city.
