Hello AIG members and others

Did you know Neil Armstrong almost died in a spectacular fireball crash just weeks before the Apollo 11 mission while training in a replica of the lunar lander.....?

And did you know that Apollo 11 actually overshot the carefully selected landing site by nearly 7 km, and only just managed to land with less than 30 seconds of fuel remaining.....?

Also, in retrospect, it turns out that the combined Russian and American effort to achieve the extraordinary feat of placing humans on the moon cost $20 billion (R120 thousand million) as well as 10 astronaut lives....

And although the initial motivation to reach the moon was driven by fierce Cold War competition, the Apollo programme and the 6 manned lunar landings resulted in tremendous scientific knowledge - like the return of 4.5 billion year old lunar rock that dates back to the very beginning of the solar system (called "Genesis Rock" by the media).....

These are just some of the fascinating things learned by the 65 people who attended the UND Astronomy Society meeting last night - including 16 AIG members.

After the short talk and exciting NASA video, we enjoyed a cup of coffee and a close-up look at the moon through the rooftop telescope (see image attached).

We are very grateful to the UND Astronomy Society for allowing our AIG members to enjoy their hospitality.

The next meeting is on Thursday 30th September and all about "The Secret History of the Sun".

Regards