Many Moons Ago. Anybody remember?

[bjrogg]

I was eight years old when we landed on the moon. I remember it so clearly. It was amazing. I remember how everyone. Young old, rich, poor, everyone was glued to the TV or Radio. I remember watching as the lunar lander search for a safe place to land. I remember Neal stepping of the ladder and saying those words. It still gives  me goosebumps. I remember Tang. I remember Cereal Boxes with cut outs you could make into the lunar lander. I dreamed of being a astronaut.
Bjrogg
PS I'd like to see us go back.

[Del the cat]

Times of great optimism... seem to have got a bit bogged down since then. 
Del

[Pat B]

It sure has Del.
 BJ, I had just graduated from highschool and remember it like it was today. Been watching a lot of stuff on PBS about it this past week.
 Something else big that happened a bit later that summer...WOODSTOCK!   The summer of '69 was my renaissance summer.   
BJ, I think we are heading back to the moon. They have found ice(h2o) in some craters on the dark side so that alone will give them water, oxygen, and hydrogen for fuel. And now it's not just the US paying for it but other countries and private companies.

[bjrogg]

It sure was Del. It seems the great exploration drive has dimmed. It had the entire world watching. Man had dreamed and told tales of going to the moon since he first looked up at it I'm sure. It brought so much of what technology we have today.
Pat that was certainly a interesting point in time. I'm sure man will go back. Most probably in a more serious long term stepping stone way.
Hope I'm still around to see it. Probably won't be as big of a deal as the first time, but for a awful lot of people it would be the first time they saw it. Just the pictures and video would be so much better.
Even if they just used their phones.lol
Bjrogg

[DC]

As much as I am in favour of space exploration. I don't understand something. What's in this for these companies that are getting involved? They wouldn't do it if there wasn't money at the end. How do they expect to make a buck?

[bjrogg]

I wonder to DC must be thinking long term. Maybe just dreaming. Why did Spain send three ships to sale off the edge of the earth? If it's nothing more than a draw on our resources and nothing but an expense. It probably won't go far. If it could pay its way. It would totally change our universe.
Bjrogg

[dylanholderman]

I started typing a response but bjrogg said it better and more concisely than me 

[Pat B]

Commercial space flight and freight hauling, maybe even mining. Look what Elon Musk has done with rockets that come back home safely. Save lots of  money there. He may have delivered supplies to the space station. They are all looking forward to heading to Mars.

[DC]

Mining in space and delivering it back here wouldn't be profitable until we totally run out here. That ain't going to be for sometime yet. The only place to take freight to is the space station so that means the bill ultimately gets back to the government. Tourism may be a possibility but there's probably only a few thousand people that could afford it. Must be something there though. Could you imagine what a hotel room on the moon would go for, even through Trivago. Is the government offering big tax exemptions for space investment, maybe?

[DC]

Me not being able to see the opportunities is probably why I'm not rich Took me a while to figure that out.

[chamookman]

BJ - A Buddy & I were 17 yr old High School Jrs, pumping gas at a Local Gas Station that nite. My Parents brought down a sm portable TV so We could watch - will never forget it, what a thrill ! Bob

[bjrogg]

Me not being able to see the opportunities is probably why I'm not rich Took me a while to figure that out.

I hear you DC. I'm still trying to figure out what a 3-d printer is though. From what little I know I'm thinking they want to mine materials and supplies for space exploration and colonization. I don't think they will make money bringing the materials back to Earth. I think I saw something about having self replicating droids that could mine and build space equipment. Kinda like R2D2 and Cp3o. Also 3-d printers to make parts. From water they think they've found frozen in craters they can make oxygen for breathing and hydrogen for fuel. And of course water for drinking. It's all above my pay grade. I think though the same thing that make these materials to expensive to mine is the thing that makes them so valuable for space exploration. They aren't on earth. They are on a low gravity moon that could become a space port to travel to different destinations. It is interesting stuff. Makes you wonder who thinks of it, but then who thought of tanning hides with brains? Using a Atlatl to through a spear? Understand that the world was round and circled the sun?
I'm sure when the time is right man will do these things. Oh and I say man but I mean woman to. Who knows maybe even pets.
Bjrogg

[Pat B]

238,900 baby steps. 

[Eric Krewson]

I was in Germany at the time, I saved this Stars And Stripes with the headline. I wonder if any of the other GIs brought one back to the states.

 

[1442]

I only remember some highlights from the black and white TV when it actually was happening. I was five years old and didn't realize the significance of it all but I remember the excitement over it and I was excited as a result of everyone else's excitement and it made a lasting impression on me, even to this day.
I am fortunate to live within a couple hours drive of NASA and the space museum. It is incredible to go there and see what is on display and marvel at what they did with what they had to work with at that time.
It was an extraordinarily extraordinary thing to accomplish. I hate to leave every time I've gone there because there are so many things, like standing beside a Saturn five type rocket, walking around it and looking at the engines and how big it is compared to how very small the space where the astronauts where and how small the landing module was and the capsule for reentry is so small. I can't imagine the courage it took to climb aboard and go to the moon like they did.
I can't imagine the dedication and intelligence of the people who worked together to figure it all out and make it happen either.  It's just so incredible, I have butterflies in my stomach now just thinking about it.