50 years ago, humanity's first steps on another world

Fifty years ago on Saturday, American astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin became the first humans in history to set foot on the Moon, an event watched on television by half a billion people.

Their lunar module, named "Eagle," touched down at 2018 GMT (4:18pm ET) on July 20, 1969.

A little over six hours later, at 0256 GMT, Armstrong placed his left foot on the lunar surface, declaring: "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind."
"The Sun was behind it, so it was illuminated by a rim of gold which made the strangest appearances of the craters and crater pits, the contrast between the whiter than white and darker than dark."
"Out there was this little pea about the size of your thumbnail at arm's length: blue, white, very shiny, you get the blue of the oceans, white of the clouds, streaks of rust we call continents, such a beautiful gorgeous tiny thing, nestled into this black velvet of the rest of the universe."
"I said to Mission control, 'Hey, Houston, I've got the world in my window.'