--- title: Rarely Seen Photos of the Apollo 11 Moon Landing description: After 45 years, you'd think there is no picture of the historic Apollo 11 moon landing that hasn't been seen a thousand times—but you'd be wrong. canonical: https://time.com/2997515/apollo-11-moon-landing-45th-anniversary-photos/ author: TIME Staff article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-07-18T18:18:23.000Z article:modified_time: 2023-12-14T08:03:46.000Z article:section: Science og:title: Rarely-Seen Photos From Apollo 11's Mission to the Moon og:description: TIME searched through NASA's archives for these rarely seen images og:url: https://time.com/2997515/apollo-11-moon-landing-45th-anniversary-photos/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt045cebb73cfb3b7d/69869c14e53abaed434d39ca/apollo-11-moon-landing-buzz-aldrin-neil-armstrong-001.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1399 og:image:height: 787 og:image:alt: Buzz Aldrin during the initial inspection of the Lunar Module (LM) at about 055:41. og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Rarely-Seen Photos From Apollo 11's Mission to the Moon twitter:description: TIME searched through NASA's archives for these rarely seen images twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt045cebb73cfb3b7d/69869c14e53abaed434d39ca/apollo-11-moon-landing-buzz-aldrin-neil-armstrong-001.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Rarely-Seen Photos From Apollo 11's Mission to the Moon > Sponsored content. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=5fe0da64-5346-4915-9a10-e01531199b22&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Apollo 11: The Final Approach [Watch (HLS stream): Apollo 11: The Final Approach](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/KwNB8oFB.m3u8) (2:27)  _Published 2009-07-20. Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin avoid near catastrophe on their final approach to Tranquility Base_ by [TIME Staff](https://time.com/author/time-staff/) ## TIME Staff Updated: Dec 14, 2023 8:03 AM UTCPublished: Jul 18, 2014 6:18 PM UTC  Buzz Aldrin during the initial inspection of the Lunar Module early in the mission. Buzz is wearing his intra-vehicular suit, designed to be as flame retardant as the rest of the ship, and made from the same fabric as the outer layer of the spacesuits. Buzz Aldrin during the initial inspection of the Lunar Module early in the mission. Buzz is wearing his intra-vehicular suit, designed to be as flame retardant as the rest of the ship, and made from the same fabric as the outer layer of the spacesuits. Mini-pan assembled by Jon Hancock; Photographs by Neil Armstrong—NASA by [TIME Staff](https://time.com/author/time-staff/) ## TIME Staff Updated: Dec 14, 2023 8:03 AM UTCPublished: Jul 18, 2014 6:18 PM UTC After 50 years, you’d think there is no picture of the historic Apollo 11 moon landing that hasn’t been seen a thousand times—but you’d be wrong. Like all travelers, Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins shot a whole lot of frames, and not all of them were keepers. NASA did keep every one of them, of course. Here a few of that are rarely published—mixed with some of the iconic ones that capture best just how extraordinary that long-ago mission was.  Buzz Aldrin during the initial inspection of the Lunar Module early in the mission. Buzz is wearing his intra-vehicular suit, designed to be as flame retardant as the rest of the ship, and made from the same fabric as the outer layer of the spacesuits. Mini-pan assembled by Jon Hancock; Photographs by Neil Armstrong—NASA  Buzz Aldrin in the LM. Neil Armstrong—NASA  A view of Earth during the mission's brief parking orbit before heading off to the moon. NASA  Command service module in orbit over the moon after lunar module separation. Michael Collins was alone in the Command Service Module. Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin were in the Lunar Module. NASA  One of three images taken from the Lunar Module during spacecraft activation in lunar orbit. The pictures were taken to make sure the film in the magazine would advance once the crew landed. Buzz Aldrin—NASA  Down-Sun (west) view of the lunar surface just after landing with the Lunar Module shadow, lunar horizon and a partial view of a shallow crater to the left of the Lunar Module shadow. Neil Armstrong—NASA  The first photo taken of Buzz coming out through the hatch of the Lunar Module . The US flag that Neil and Buzz will deploy later, is stowed in a long, thin canister attached to the underside of the lefthand rail of the ladder. Neil Armstrong—NASA  Buzz has both feet on the footpad. His communications antenna is visible. Neil Armstrong—NASA  Buzz deploys the Solar Wind Collector, a foil sheet which he is pointing at the Sun. The word 'Shade' is printed on the bottom of the back side and 'Sun' is on the sunward side. At the end of the moon walk, after exposing the SWC to the Sun for about 1 hr 17 min, Buzz will roll up the foil and pack it in a bag for analysis back on Earth. Neil Armstrong—NASA  A close-up of the lunar surface with Buzz's boot and footprint. He took this photo right after the iconic footprint image. Buzz Aldrin—NASA  The lunar surface and horizon with the NASA TV camera visible just left of center. Buzz Aldrin—NASA  This photograph is the first in a sequence of pictures Neil took of Buzz carrying part of the mission's experiment package out to the deployment site a short way south of the spacecraft. The piece of equipment in his right hand is a laser reflector, used to measure the Earth-moon distance precisely. A seismometer package is in Buzz's left hand. Neil Armstrong—NASA  Buzz has now deployed both the east and west solar panels on the seismometer. He is looking toward the LM, perhaps to get a reference for his alignment. Neil Armstrong—NASA  Post-deployment documentation photo of the laser reflector with the stereo camera perched on a flat-topped rock in the background. As of December 2010, the retroreflectors were still being used in conjunction with a dedicated facility at the MacDondald Observatory in Texas. Neil Armstrong—NASA  No other Apollo photograph has been reproduced as often as this portrait of Buzz. Neil is, of course, visible in reflection on Buzz's visor. Buzz has his left arm raised and is probably reading the checklist sewn on the wrist cover of his glove. Neil Armstrong—NASA  A shot of the Lunar Module with the equipment bay in the shadowed area at right center and the rockbox on the right-front corner. Buzz Aldrin—NASA  View of Earth over the Lunar Module. There is some uncertainty about who took these pictures of Earth. Australia is visible in sunlight on the left side of the Earth. NASA  Buzz is preparing to remove the seismometer from the lefthand compartment in the equipment bay. He used a pulley-mounted tape to raise the door which can be seen above the right side of the bay. The tape is visible to his right, draped over a Lunar Module strut. Neil Armstrong—NASA  One of two photos Neil took of Buzz saluting the U.S. flag. Buzz's fingertips are visible on the far side of his faceplate. Neil Armstrong—NASA  After finishing at the equipment bay, Neil joined Buzz at the ladder. Buzz gave the camera to Neil, who took four frames of the commemorative plaque on the ladder strut and three pictures of the bulk sample area. This is the first of the plaque photos. Neil Armstrong—NASA  The black shadow of the Lunar Module is silhouetted against the Moon's surface in this photograph taken out Neil's window after the crew had returned to the LM. Impressions in the lunar soil made by the lunar boots of the two astronauts are clearly visible. Buzz Aldrin—NASA  Buzz took this picture of Neil in the cabin after the completion of the moonwalk. Neil has his helmet off but has not yet removed his "Snoopy" cap. The circuit breaker panels are illuminated, and a small floodlight is on at the lower right. Buzz Aldrin—NASA  Buzz has handed the camera back to Neil again who attempts to make a portrait of Buzz in the cabin. The extremely bright light coming through the window is being reflected off of the lunar surface. Neil Armstrong—NASA  Neil documents the surface experiments south of the Lunar Module. Two components of the equipment package they left behind are seen: the seismograph (left) and the laser reflector (right). Neil Armstrong—NASA  A view of the U.S. flag, deployed on the surface of the Moon and the deployed black and white lunar surface television camera which televised the lunar surface extravehicular activity in the background. Buzz Aldrin—NASA  Earth from lunar orbit, probably not long after Rev 4 Earthrise. NASA ## Transcript >> You go to [ unk ]. You would go to [ unk ]. >> Roger. >> During the landing, listeners back home could hear Armstrong calling out a 1201 alarm. >> 1201. >> 1201. >> Roger. 1201 alarm. >> which was nothing more than NASA gibberish to most people listening at home, but to NASA controllers was a very serious problem. >> That's affirmative. >> Program alarm. >> The onboard computers, which were infinitely less sophisticated than today's computers, have become overloaded and had simply quit processing the data. The best computer onboard, however, was Neil Armstrong and his pilot's eye and pilot's brain. >> 3, 000 feet. Program alarm. >> And he was able to navigate the spacecraft over an unexpected boulder field that appeared in their path. >> 100 feet speed down at 19. >> There had been orbital reconnaissance of the lunar surface for years before the landing took place, but the resolution in the Lunar Orbiter space crafts were only so good, which means that boulder fields and other small obstacles would not appear. >> 2, 000 feet. -[ unk ] go for landing. >> Throughout the descent, Aldrin was calling off a series of numbers-- >> 35 degrees, 750. >> that tracked their approach to the moon. >> 60 seconds. >> You also hear Aldrin calling off second counts. That's the amount of time the crew has left before their fuel is exhausted and their engine cuts off. >> 40 feet down 2- 1 / 2. Kicking up some dust. Had the fuel run out ,-- >> 30 seconds more. >> it wouldn't have been like your car that putter slowly to a stop. There would have been a simple immediate cutoff of the engine. After that, your engine was dead. >> I'm back right. Okay, engine stops. [ unk ] >> Houston, Tranquility base here. The eagle has landed. >> Armstrong eyeballed a smooth landing site, managed to get his lander over there and settle it down with seconds of fuel to spare. >> Roger, Tranquility, we copy you on the ground. You got a bunch of guys about to turn blue. We're breezing again. Thanks a lot. >> It was a tribute to Armstrong's piloting skill and Aldrin's navigation skill that they landed safely. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/2997515/apollo-11-moon-landing-45th-anniversary-photos/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/2997515/apollo-11-moon-landing-45th-anniversary-photos/"},"headline":"Rarely-Seen Photos From Apollo 11's Mission to the Moon","datePublished":"2014-07-18T18:18:23.000Z","dateModified":"2023-12-14T08:03:46.000Z","description":"TIME searched through NASA's archives for these rarely seen images","url":"https://time.com/2997515/apollo-11-moon-landing-45th-anniversary-photos/","keywords":["Space","NASA","moon","photography","astronauts","apollo 11","neil armstrong","1969","apollo1150"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt045cebb73cfb3b7d/69869c14e53abaed434d39ca/apollo-11-moon-landing-buzz-aldrin-neil-armstrong-001.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"TIME Staff","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/time-staff/"}],"articleSection":"Science","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt045cebb73cfb3b7d/69869c14e53abaed434d39ca/apollo-11-moon-landing-buzz-aldrin-neil-armstrong-001.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Buzz Aldrin during the initial inspection of the Lunar Module (LM) at about 055:41.","caption":"Buzz Aldrin during the initial inspection of the Lunar Module (LM) at about 055:41.","creditText":"Mini-pan assembled by Jon Hancock; Photographs by Neil Armstrong—NASA","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/science/","name":"Science"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/space/","name":"Space"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/2997515/apollo-11-moon-landing-45th-anniversary-photos/","name":"Rarely-Seen Photos From Apollo 11's Mission to the Moon"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Apollo 11: The Final Approach","description":"Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin avoid near catastrophe on their final approach to Tranquility Base","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/KwNB8oFB/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2009-07-20T14:19:25.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/KwNB8oFB.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/2997515/apollo-11-moon-landing-45th-anniversary-photos/","duration":"PT2M27S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/2997515/apollo-11-moon-landing-45th-anniversary-photos/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```