The Moon Adventure

Since the dawn of civilisation, we have always wondered where the Moon came from. But until we finally managed to visit it in 1969, its origins remained a complete mystery to science.

Looking up at the night sky when the Moon is full, it’s hard to draw your eyes away from the bright globe staring down at you. But it’s not only the brightness that’s attention-grabbing, it’s that there is so much to look at, even without a telescope. 

The biggest clue to why the Moon always looks different when you look up at the sky is that it is constantly moving in relation to Earth and the Sun. It pops up in different places and at different times because it orbits the Earth. 

The sudden darkening of the Sun in the daytime. A blood red Moon rising at night. These are rare occasions that inspire awe in all those that get to experience them. 

What if the Moon suddenly disappeared? Would our planet be plunged into chaos, or would we not care? The answer is perhaps more subtle than you would expect.

Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin’s walks on the Moon inspired awe in the millions who huddled round to watch on their televisions screens in 1969, and billions since. But the most awe-inspiring part of Apollo 11 was not televised in its entirety – how the astronauts got to the Moon and back. 

Every single argument claiming that NASA faked the Moon landings has been discredited. But even today 50 years later, people discuss conspiracy claims online, on television programmes and around the dinner table. 

NASA had to find ingenious ways to keep astronauts alive in the hostile lunar environment – which would kill anyone without the proper kit in an instant. But more than that, scientists developed technologies that made the astronauts mobile.

There are many reasons to build a permanent base on the Moon. But where would we live and how could we survive the Moon’s hostile environment? 

We may not have put boots on the Moon since 1972, but interest in returning is growing. This time around, the promise of learning more about the lunar surface is not the only motivation. 

Download My Moon Adventure to print and do at home or at school! Full of fun things to do and fascinating facts.

• Marvin and Milo space collection of experiments to do at home
• NASA’s 1969 student friendly introduction to the Early Apollo Scientific Experiments Package (EASEP)
• Google Earth’s reconstruction of the descent of the lunar lander
• NASA’s article about what Neil and Buzz left on the Moon
• Teaching and learning resources from the Science and Technology Facilities Council