Rare, stunning Apollo 11 moon landing pictures
You can see the earth out in the distance, hovering above the lunar landing module. Photo: NASA
It’s one of the most replayed moments in the history of the world, but even the moon landing has its unseen moments.
After 45 years in the NASA archives, TIME has uncovered stunning behind the scenes images of the Apollo 11 crew during their incredible mission.
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Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins took a whole heap of photos while being the first men to land on the moon, but not all were for public consumption.
Along with telling the stories of some of the more ubiquitous photos from the landing, TIME explored NASA’s catalogue of images for the more intimate moments the crew shared.
Amongst the shots, we learn just how cramped and claustrophobic the lunar landing module was.
We also see a photo of Armstrong just after he’s completed the moonwalk, sporting a wide smile from ear to ear.
Post moonwalk smile
Buzz Aldrin took this photo of Neil Armstrong shortly after he completed the first ever moon walk. Photo: NASA
Buzz Aldrin in the lunar module
Notice the massive control panel behind him and notes stuck to the roof. Photo: NASA
Neil Armstrong took this imperfect photo of Buzz Aldrin, again in the lunar module. Again note the mess of paper and dials as the crew fly toward the moon. Photo: NASA
First glimpse of lunar surface
The crew took this photo during an early orbit of the moon, to make sure their film would advance properly. Photo: NASA
The second man on the moon
No one remembers who came second? Armstrong did. Here he snaps Aldrin as he’s about to be the second man on the moon. Photo: NASA
Buzz getting to work
It wasn’t a sightseeing mission. Aldrin here takes surveying equipment onto the moon. Photo: NASA
Back where they came from
You can see the earth out in the distance, hovering above the lunar landing module. Photo: NASA