NASA’S HISTORIC APOLLO 11 MISSION—manned by astronauts Michael Collins, Buzz Aldrin, and commander Neil Armstrong—departed earth on July 16, 1969, and landed on the moon four days later, near the Sea of Tranquility, while 500 million people watched on television. Armstrong and Aldrin spent two and a half hours exploring the surface of the moon, collecting samples, and taking photographs.

The camera they used was a 70mm lunar surface camera, designed specifically for the event. During the mission, nine magazines of 70mm film were exposed, providing panoramic views of the surface near the lunar module and allowing detailed topographic mapping of the lunar surface. Most of the photographs were taken by Armstrong, with Aldrin assisting in some cases.