The Apollo program was a United States space program aimed at the first manned lunar landing. It brought people to the moon for the first and only time. The program was developed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) operated between 1961 and 1972.
The program suffered a major setback in 1967 when an Apollo 1 cabin fire during a pre-launch test killed the entire crew. After the first successful landing, there was enough Flight equipment left for nine follow-up landings, with plans for expanded geological and astrophysical exploration of the Moon. Budget cuts forced the cancellation of three of them. Five of the The remaining six missions resulted in successful landings, but Apollo 13’s landing was prevented by an oxygen tank explosion en route to the Moon, which disabled the CSM. The crew returned safely to Earth, using the lunar module as a “lifeboat” on the way back.
Apollo set several important milestones in manned space travel. Apollo 8 was the first manned spacecraft to orbit another celestial body, and Apollo 11 was the first manned spacecraft to orbit humans landed on a celestial body.
In total, the Apollo program returned 382 kg of lunar rock to Earth, making a significant contribution to understanding the composition and geological history of the Moon. The Apollo program also spurred progress pioneered many technological areas in rocketry and human spaceflight, including avionics, telecommunications and computers.
