So Armstrong climbed down the ladder, followed by his famous 'one small step' line. 'In all previous missions, if someone, a crew member, was to spacewalk, it was always the junior person, not the space commander who would stay inside,' Aldrin wrote.ДЄt least one team at NASA though the junior person should go out first, Aldrin wrote, 'but many people felt the great symbology of the commander. Typically the junior person - Aldrin in this case - would step outside so that the more senior person - Armstrong - would be left safely behind the controls and in a better position to take action in an emergency. In a Reddit AMA to mark the 45th anniversary of the historic mission, Aldrin described the uniqueness of NASA's decision to have Armstrong walk on the moon first. Michael Collins stayed behind in lunar orbit as command module pilot. Armstrong was commander of Apollo 11 and Aldrin was the lunar module pilot. Most people assume that NASA always planned for Armstrong to be the first person to step out onto the moon because of his rank. Buzz Aldrin followed about 20 minutes later. July 20, 2019, is the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing when American astronaut Neil Armstrong became the first person ever to plant boots on the dusty lunar surface. Most people assume mission Commander Neil Armstrong was always NASA's first choice to walk on the moon because of his seniority.ДЄpollo 11 Lunar Module Pilot Buzz Aldrin revealed in a Reddit AMA that in previous moonwalks, it was typical for the junior crewmember to leave the space capsule while the commander remained inside.ДЄccording to Aldrin, NASA decided Armstrong should walk on the moon first because it was 'symbolic.' July 20, 2019, is the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing when American astronaut Neil Armstrong became the first person ever to walk on the moon.

Armstrong first man on the moon