About how many people were on the moon, and whether they were there at all, there has been debate for decades. Supporters of the landing of astronauts claim that this event was a decisive argument in the space dispute between the USA and the USSR, after which the basic space programs were substantially adjusted on both sides. For some, the first manned flight to the moon is a myth developed by treacherous Americans, but for most people, visiting our natural satellite is an indisputable fact.
Background
The first space launch in the direction of our satellite was launched in 1959, already 15 months after the launch of the first artificial Earth satellite. For quite a long time only Soviet space explorers acted in this direction. Representatives of the United States began to work in this direction only after the launch of their lunar automatons "Ranger", the first series of which was launched in 1964.
Until the early 70s, the question "How many people were on the moon?" it didn’t make sense - for this there was no technological opportunity. In 1971, the Apollo program began to be seriously developed in the United States. Its successful implementation cost American taxpayers $ 25 billion. President Kennedy considered the successful start of lunar expansion a priority national task that would strengthen the space prestige of the United States and prove the economic and scientific capabilities of this state.
The implementation of the plan to land a man on the moon became possible after the launch and successful testing of the Saturn-5 launch vehicle. It was he who was used in picking the Apollo 11.
First landing
The number of people on the moon during the first interplanetary expedition is known from newspaper publications and reports that circled the whole world in July 1969. The names of the three Americans, members of the first space crew, are N. Armstrong, M. Collins, Edwin Aldrin. Of these, Armstrong and Aldrin were the first to step onto the ground of our satellite, while Collins remained in a lunar orbit. Astronauts left commemorative signs on the moon with images of dead space explorers, collected lunar soil samples, installed radar reflectors, after 21 hours they started on the take-off stage and joined the main flight block.
After eight days, the crew landed without incident in the Pacific, where they were picked up by a team of rescuers.
Further expeditions
The successful start of the pioneers of space gave rise to further expeditions on ships of the Apollo type. In total, five expeditions were sent to our natural satellite. This already gives a general idea of how many people have visited the moon and how many reserves have been expended for these flights. According to official sources, 26 people were sent to the moon, and twelve lucky ones managed to directly touch the lunar soil.
About how many times people flew to the moon can be determined by the Apollo space program - a total of 7 expeditions were sent, and only one of them was unsuccessful. The ill-fated Apollo 13 got an accident at the start of its voyage, its crew was forbidden to descend to the satellite’s surface. Therefore, the answer to the question of how many times people were on the moon contains a small catch. Apollo 13 flew to our satellite, but no landing was made on the surface of the moon.
How many people have been to the moon twice?
Were there any people who visited our companion several times? All the people who flew to the moon were US citizens, experienced astronaut pilots who received special training at NASA centers. Of these, there was only one astronaut who managed to visit our moon twice. It turned out to be Yu. Cernan. The first time he flew to the moon as part of the Apollo 10 space crew. Then he was aboard the artificial moon satellite, only 15 km from its surface. The second time, as the commander of the Apollo 17 spacecraft, Eugene Cernan flew to the Moon in 1972. Then, along with his partner H. Schmitt, he landed in the Taurus Mountains and Litrov Crater. Cernan went to the surface of our satellite three times in total and stayed there for 23 hours.
So how many people were on the moon? A total of twelve people touched the surface of the moon, and twenty-six flew in space crews.