On January 4, 1970, NASA cancelled the Apollo 20 moon mission. This came simply six months after Apollo 11 astronauts Buzz Aldrin and Neil Armstrong became the first people to ever set foot on the moon. Rather of introducing another team of astronauts to the moon, NASA decided to use the Saturn V rocket that was built for Apollo 20 to launch the Skylab spaceport station instead. Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin stands on the lunar surface area during the first moon landing in 1969. (Image credit: NASA) Budget cuts along with the almost deadly catastrophe that took place with Apollo 13 led NASA to ultimately cut two more Apollo missions, Apollo 18 and Apollo 19. Canceling these objectives also released up resources for the space shuttle bus program.Image: https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/ksc-73pc-410.jpg Prior to launch in May 1973, the Skylab space station, foreground, awaits liftoff atop a Saturn V on the Kennedy Space Centers Launch Pad 39A. Catch up on our whole “On This Day In Space” series on YouTube with this playlist. On This Day in Space Archive! Still inadequate space? Dont forget to have a look at our Space Image of the Day, and on the weekends our Best Space Photos and Top Space News Stories of the week. Email Hanneke Weitering at [email protected] or follow her @hannekescience. Follow us @Spacedotcom and on Facebook..
