Canadian contributions to the historic Apollo 11 mission that landed humans on the moon for the first time are being honoured by Canada Post on Thursday.
The Crown corporation is issuing two commemorative stamps to celebrate the mission’s 50th anniversary.
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The Apollo 11 mission was a giant leap for human space exploration, featuring significant Canadian ingenuity and innovation.
Commander Neil Armstrong and lunar module pilot Buzz Aldrin, both American, landed the Apollo Lunar Module Eagle on July 20, 1969, at 4:17 p.m. EST.
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Armstrong became the first person to ever step on the moon; Aldrin joined him 19 minutes later.
They spent just over two hours together outside the spacecraft, collecting lunar material to bring back to Earth.
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Armstrong’s first steps were broadcast on live television to a worldwide audience.
He is famously recorded as describing the event as “one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.”
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Apollo 11 ended the space race between the U.S. and the Soviet Union, fulfilling a national goal proposed in 1961 by then-president John F. Kennedy of “landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth” before the end of that decade.
Canadian engineers working at both NASA and Héroux-Devtek – a company based in Longueuil, Que., that built part of the lunar lander – were instrumental in making the mission a success.
The families of those involved in the historic feat were on hand for the reveal.
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