SPACE.com -- What If...? Apollo 11 Disaster


	What If...? Apollo 11 Disaster posted: 12:28 pm ET 09 July 1999

This brief story appeared in Thursday's LA Times, but it still has legs

As the 30-year anniversary of mans first walk on the moon approaches, nearly everyone remembers where they were when Neil Armstrong spoke his famous words. They also remember the excitement and the fact that the space race was over. The Americans had won.

But many dont always remember how dangerous it was and didnt know some were prepared for the worst. What if, after walking the moon, Armstrong and Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin couldnt make it back? One person who was prepared was President Nixon.

So, as the Apollo XI astronauts were headed to the moon, secret plans were being made for an official response to the worst-case scenario: If the astronauts who landed on the moon couldn't take off again, they would ultimately, and very publicly, die there.

Documents in the National Archives reveal that White House speech writers were ready for anything. If necessary, President Nixon would have given this speech to the nation:

"Fate has ordained that the men who went to the moon to explore in peace will stay on the moon to rest in peace. These brave men, Neil Armstrong and Edwin Aldrin, know that there is no hope for their recovery. But they also know that there is hope for mankind in their sacrifice.

"These two men are laying down their lives in mankind's most noble goal: the search for truth and understanding. They will be mourned by their families and friends; they will be mourned by their nation; they will be mourned by the people of the world; they will be mourned by a Mother Earth that dared send two of her sons into the unknown.

"In their exploration, they stirred the people of the world to feel as one; in their sacrifice, they bind more tightly the brotherhood of man. In ancient days, men looked at stars and saw their heroes in the constellations. In modern times, we do much the same, but our heroes are epic men of flesh and blood.

"Others will follow, and surely find their way home. Man's search will not be denied. But these men were the first, and they will remain the foremost in our hearts.

"For every human being who looks up at the moon in the nights to come will know that there is some corner of another world that is forever mankind."

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