But this first was not the last for NASA. The United States would go on to complete six crewed missions to the moon that landed a total of 12 astronauts (all men) from 1969 to 1972 in a series of Apollo missions numbering up to Apollo 17. The only mission that failed to reach the moon’s surface was Apollo 13, which suffered a critical power and oxygen failure mid-flight, and was forced to make a heroic emergency reentry.
“Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor?”
“Germans?”
“Forget it, he’s rolling.”