One small step for man

Fifty years ago, man set foot on the moon for the first time.  Years from now, when the United States of America has ceased to exist, we will still be remembered by historians as the first nation, as Robert Howard might put it, to tread the virgin soil of Luna beneath our booted feet.

I was born in the 1970s, so I obviously missed out on these early space milestones.  My biggest "space" experience as a child was watching the Challenger explode on live television.  But in recent years, I've come to appreciate just how unlikely the whole moon landing was and therefore how impressive and fantastic it is that we pulled it off.  It really was a marvelous achievement.

Neil Armstrong has sadly passed on, but Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins are still with us, and I hope they have a wonderful day full of fond reminiscences and celebrations on this day, the fiftieth anniversary of their mission's triumphant climax.  They deserve it.