The Apollo missions - in pictures

  • The Nasa Moon vehicle used in 1969 for Apollo 11, the first mission landing a human being on the lunar surface. All Photos: Getty Images
    The Nasa Moon vehicle used in 1969 for Apollo 11, the first mission landing a human being on the lunar surface. All Photos: Getty Images
  • Pilot Neil Armstrong next to the X-15 ship after a research flight. The X-15 was a rocket-powered aircraft that set the world's unofficial speed and altitude records
    Pilot Neil Armstrong next to the X-15 ship after a research flight. The X-15 was a rocket-powered aircraft that set the world's unofficial speed and altitude records
  • Apollo XII astronauts Charles 'Pete' Conrad Jnr and Albert Bean practise collecting rock samples at the Kennedy Space Centre in preparation for their lunar landing mission in 1969
    Apollo XII astronauts Charles 'Pete' Conrad Jnr and Albert Bean practise collecting rock samples at the Kennedy Space Centre in preparation for their lunar landing mission in 1969
  • A lunar landing research vehicle in flight over California in 1964. The untethered simulator was used to profile the descent to the Moon's surface
    A lunar landing research vehicle in flight over California in 1964. The untethered simulator was used to profile the descent to the Moon's surface
  • Nasa's Lunar Orbit and Let-Down Approach Simulator, a high-tech simulator designed to represent what an Apollo astronaut would see if they were looking at the lunar surface
    Nasa's Lunar Orbit and Let-Down Approach Simulator, a high-tech simulator designed to represent what an Apollo astronaut would see if they were looking at the lunar surface
  • This three-radial-module space station concept was intended to utilize Apollo hardware to deploy the station and transfer crews to and from orbit
    This three-radial-module space station concept was intended to utilize Apollo hardware to deploy the station and transfer crews to and from orbit
  • A section of the giant Saturn V-Apollo rocket being transported from its building site to the launch pad in Cape Kennedy in 1967
    A section of the giant Saturn V-Apollo rocket being transported from its building site to the launch pad in Cape Kennedy in 1967
  • Astronaut Eugene Andrew Cernan photographs the terrain in Boulder City, Nevada, during geology training for his spaceflight in 1972
    Astronaut Eugene Andrew Cernan photographs the terrain in Boulder City, Nevada, during geology training for his spaceflight in 1972
  • Apollo 13 astronaut John L. Swigert Jr sits in a rescue basket as he is lifted aboard a recovery helicopter following splashdown in the Pacific Ocean in 1970
    Apollo 13 astronaut John L. Swigert Jr sits in a rescue basket as he is lifted aboard a recovery helicopter following splashdown in the Pacific Ocean in 1970