NASA Since 1958, NASA has made a number of great gains in science and technology. It is the leader in aerospace research. It has provided us with new ways to view Earth and space. In 1961, President Kennedy announced that America should land a man on the moon and return him safely to Earth. He wanted to beat the Russians to the honor. NASA accomplished Kennedy's mandate with Apollo 11. It was a famous rocket flight. On July 20, 1969, NASA put men on the moon. The first man to step on the moon's surface was Neil Armstrong. It was a great moment. His first words were, 'That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” In the 1980s, the space shuttle became a new public interest. NASA launched the first space shuttle in 1981. They developed the shuttle to be a reusable craft. Rockets could be used only once. NASA also had many unmanned missions. Robots were used. Spacecraft made flights toward other planets such as Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. They sent back scientific data and color images.