posted 06-29-2019 04:06 PM               

'Moon Landing: 50 Years' Stamps

Fifty years ago, at 12.56pm on 21 July 1969 (AEST), an estimated 600 million people worldwide watched American astronaut Neil Armstrong become the first person in history to step onto the surface of the Moon. As he alighted from lunar module Eagle, Armstrong uttered the now immortal words, "That's one small step for (a) man; one giant leap for mankind."

Armstrong was accompanied in the Eagle by pilot Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin, who joined him on the Moon's surface some 20 minutes later, while Michael Collins piloted the command module Columbia in lunar orbit. After 21 hours 36 minutes on the lunar surface the lunar module docked with the orbiting command module and Armstrong and Aldrin returned to Columbia.

Australia played a crucial role in telecasting the historic event to television sets all over the world. The actual moments of Armstrong stepping onto the lunar surface were carried via the Honeysuckle Creek tracking station (ACT). After the first nine minutes the Parkes radio telescope (NSW) transmitted the rest of the broadcast. The NASA tracking stations at Carnarvon (WA) and Tidbinbilla (ACT) also supported the mission.

posted 06-29-2019 04:10 PM               

The Snoopy Journey to Deep Space stamp pack features 20 x $1 Apollo 11, Lunar Module 'Eagle' from the "Moon Landing: 50 Years" stamp issue presented with images of Snoopy and the Peanuts gang in the tabs.

Commemorate 50 years since man first landed on the Moon by joining Snoopy and the Peanuts gang on a journey into deep space. On 21 July 1969 (AEST), American astronaut Neil Armstrong uttered the immortal words "That's one small step for (a) man, one giant leap for mankind," after stepping onto the lunar surface from the Apollo lunar module Eagle.

Two months before this historic Apollo 11 mission, NASA's Apollo 10 orbited the Moon as a "dress rehearsal" for the Moon landing. Peanuts fans remember Apollo 10 as the mission that made Charlie Brown and Snoopy part of the US space program, when their names were adopted as the official call signs of the Apollo 10 command module and lunar landing module.

So start the countdown for a space-age celebration!