The Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin touched down on the lunar surface in their lunar module 'Eagle' on 20th July 1969. They were the first of only 12 people to stand on the lunar surface - so far. The six Apollo missions brought back more than a third of a tonne of Moon rocks and yielded a wealth of valuable scientific information and insights into the origin and evolution of the Earth and the Moon.
Now humans are about to return to the Moon. An ambitious project called Artemis will not only land the first woman on the Moon, but see the establishment of a space station in orbit around the Moon and permanent outposts on the lunar surface.
Join Dr John Mason of the South Downs Planetarium for a fascinating look at the Moon and our relationship to it.
Please note the Cathedral will be closed to the public while this event is taking place.
Dr John Mason is Principal Lecturer at the South Downs Planetarium in Chichester. He has an international reputation as an enthusiastic and entertaining communicator of science. John has been leading overseas expeditions to observe and record natural phenomena such as annular and total solar eclipses, the polar aurora and major meteor showers to destinations all over the world for over 30 years. The asteroid 1990 MN was named 6092 Johnmason, after him by the International Astronomical Union in recognition of his various contributions to astronomy and he was made an MBE in the 2009 New Year’s Honours list for his services to science education.
