It was just days after man first stepped foot on the moon at a monumental time in history when humankind realised so much more was possible.
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A clipping from The Canberra Times on Wednesday, July 23, 1969 boldly states: "Man is 'immortal'".
"Dr Wernher von Braun says that Sunday's moonwalk has assured mankind of immortality," the paper reported.
"Dr von Braun, director of the Marshall Space Flight Centre and a key man in the Apollo programme, said yesterday, 'I think the ability of man to walk and actually live in other worlds has virtually assured mankind of immortality'."
It continues: "'We can from now on move to where we want to go, where other worlds can support our life'."
The former director of NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston told the Sunday Canberra Times this week he agreed with the sentiment, 50 years on.
"Apollo was just a first step, but it proved we can go into space and function," Gerry Griffin said.
Mr Griffin was a flight director in Mission Control, Houston, when Apollo 11 put Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin on the moon.
He said Apollo 11 pulled the world together in a "very turbulent time", and while it was monumental, he couldn't reflect on it for long as he had to get ready for Apollo 12.
He was lead flight director for three lunar landing missions, Apollo 12, 15 and 17.
He was due to be lead of the Apollo 13 landing but after it was aborted due to the oxygen tank explosion, he instead directed a team of flight controllers who were responsible for the safe return of the astronauts.
"Some day we will take the next step and go into deeper space and ultimately find another place 'out there' where the human species can survive and carry on when/if planet Earth can no longer sustain us," Mr Griffin said.
He said the Apollo program would be recognised by historians as the greatest technological achievement of the 20th century.
"Space represents an unknown frontier, and exploration of the unknown is embedded in the DNA of humans...always has been, always will be," Mr Griffin said.
He said it was important to be prepared for a future where nobody knows what will happen.
"When I graduated from Texas A&M University as an aeronautical engineer there was no human space program. Just 13 years later Neil Armstrong stepped onto the lunar surface, and I was a part of it because my basic STEM education prepared me to be a player."
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Kimberley Le Lievre
Passionate about sharing people's stories. Email me at kimberley.lelievre@canberratimes.com.au
Passionate about sharing people's stories. Email me at kimberley.lelievre@canberratimes.com.au
