Apollo 11 Anniversaries

Apollo 11 was the first human spaceflight to land on the Moon. In the decades after its 1969 mission took place, widespread celebrations have been held to celebrate its anniversaries.

10th anniversary

The Apollo 11 crew, Buzz Aldrin, Neil Armstrong, and Michael Collins, who had not appeared publicly since the 5th anniversary, participated in ceremonies in Washington D.C. on July 20, 1979.

15th anniversary

A model rocket launch, closed to the public due to the explosives involved, occurred at Kennedy Space Center in 1984.

20th anniversary

On the 20th anniversary in 1989, President George H. W. Bush announced plans to return to the Moon and then to Mars, known as the Space Exploration Initiative (SEI).

The USPS released a stamp designed by Chris Calle, son of Paul Calle, the artist that designed the Apollo 11 stamp issued in 1969. The $2.40 priority mail stamp depicts two astronauts planting a flag on the Moon. Living people cannot be featured on US stamps, but the faces of the astronauts are obscured by their visors. It was released July 20 at the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum in Washington D.C.

25th anniversary

On July 16, 1994, NASA held a replay of the countdown and launched scale models of the Saturn rocket. The Apollo 11 astronauts declined to attend. They had attended the event five years prior.

The United States Postal Service (USPS) issued two stamps, a 29 cent vertical stamp and a $9.95 express mail stamp, to commemorate the anniversary. The 29 cent stamp depicts an astronaut saluting a flag on the Moon; the express mail stamp shows a zoomed-out version of the same scene. They were designed by Paul and Chris Calle. The stamp design was unveiled July 20 by Aldrin in Washington.

The Apollo 11 crew accepted an invitation to the White House on July 21 to celebrate the event. President Bill Clinton, Vice President Al Gore, First Lady Hillary Clinton, and other members of Apollo flight crews were among the attendees.

PBS released a documentary, ''Apollo 13: To the Edge and Back''.

30th anniversary

On the 30th anniversary in 1999, Vice-President Al Gore awarded the astronauts with the Langley Gold Medal for aviation. This was the twenty-second time the award had been given out. The ceremony was held at the National Air and Space Museum. On receiving the medal, Armstrong said, "We the Apollo 11 crew are enormously appreciative of being asked to receive this Langley Medal and we do so on behalf of all the men and women of the Apollo program."

Armstrong attended a banquet at Kennedy Space Center but declined to sign autographs or make a speech. Aldrin attended the event as well; Collins declined, as he was retired. Aldrin held a public briefing on July 17 at the center.

The USPS issued a 33-cent stamp as part of a series of stamps that commemorated events that occurred in the 1960s. The stamp, named "Man Walks on Moon", is Scott catalogue number 3188e, and depicts Aldrin's lunar bootprint. It was unveiled at Kennedy Space Center on July 17.

Ground was broke at Kennedy Space Center for the Apollo Exhibit located in the U.S. Space Walk of Fame.

The National Air and Space Museum added two new exhibits: Armstrong and Aldrin's helmet and gloves, and the ability to operate a camera inside of the lunar module, allowing visitors to see inside the cockpit for the first time.

On July 21, Aldrin was a keynote speaker at the unveiling of a Moon rock at the base of the Tribune Tower in Chicago, Illinois. This marked the first time NASA loaned a lunar sample to a private corporation rather than a school, museum, or planetarium. The rock was removed in 2011 due to an outdated display. A new rock display is planned but has not been installed .

The USS ''Hornet'' held a ten-day event called Moonfest 1999 at the museum. The event included NASA exhibits and evening astronomy. Aldrin, along with Carl Seilberlich, captain of the ''Hornet'' during recovery operations, attended the event on the 24th, the anniversary of the day of the recovery. 17,000 visitors attended the event.

40th anniversary

On July 15, 2009, Life.com released a photo gallery of previously unpublished photos of the astronauts taken by ''Life'' photographer Ralph Morse prior to the Apollo 11 launch. From July 16 to 24, 2009, NASA streamed the original mission audio on its website in real time 40 years to the minute after the events occurred. In addition, it is in the process of restoring the video footage and has released a preview of key moments. In July 2010, air-to-ground voice recordings and film footage shot in Mission Control during the Apollo 11 powered descent and landing was re-synchronized and released for the first time. The John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum set up an Adobe Flash website that rebroadcasts the transmissions of Apollo 11 from launch to landing on the Moon.

On July 20, 2009, Armstrong, Aldrin, and Collins met with U.S. President Barack Obama at the White House. "We expect that there is, as we speak, another generation of kids out there who are looking up at the sky and are going to be the next Armstrong, Collins, and Aldrin", Obama said. "We want to make sure that NASA is going to be there for them when they want to take their journey." On August 7, 2009, an act of Congress awarded the three astronauts a Congressional Gold Medal, the highest civilian award in the United States. The bill was sponsored by Florida Senator Bill Nelson and Florida Representative Alan Grayson.

A group of British scientists interviewed as part of the anniversary events reflected on the significance of the Moon landing:

45th anniversary

On July 21, 2014, the Kennedy Space Center Operations and Checkout building was renamed for Armstrong. Aldrin and Collins attended the ceremony.

50th anniversary

On June 10, 2015, Congressman Bill Posey introduced resolution H.R. 2726 to the 114th session of the United States House of Representatives directing the United States Mint to design and sell commemorative coins in gold, silver and clad for the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission. On January 24, 2019, the Mint released the Apollo 11 50th Anniversary commemorative coins to the public on its website.

The USPS created two forever stamps to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the mission. The stamps were designed by Antonio Alcalá. One stamp features the famous image that Armstrong took of Aldrin, with Armstrong visible in Aldrin's faceplate's reflection. The other stamp shows an image of the Moon, taken by Gregory H. Revera, with the Apollo 11 landing site highlighted. The stamps were unveiled at Kennedy Space Center on July 19. Apollo 9 astronaut Rusty Schweickart was among the celebrities present.

The Smithsonian Institute's National Air and Space Museum and NASA sponsored the “Apollo 50 Festival” on the National Mall in Washington DC. The three day (July 18 to 20, 2019) outdoor festival featured hands-on exhibits and activities, live performances, and speakers such as Adam Savage and NASA scientists.

As part of the festival was a projection of the tall Sa