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15 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 21 JULY 2019 outside his own, the People of Malta join the rest of the world in saluting the men whose cour- age and dedication backed by the untiring efforts of scientists and countless collaborators have made possible this new conquest in space and in the same way as Malta has advocat- ed peace below the waters of the world, she fervently prays that peace shall continue to reign in the vastness of space beyond it." Even advertisers did not miss out on the buss of the moon landing, with the sewing ma- chine company Singer using the Apollo 11 rocket to state that its machines had sewn the space suits used by the astronauts. The political motivation be- hind going to the moon was also not a factor to be downplayed. "The Russians had already sent Yuri Gagarin into space, and the Americans had to beef up their efforts to ensure their global dominance in scientific innova- tion," Ellul Mercer said. Yet, when the Apollo 11 mis- sion was beginning its decent back to the earth's atmosphere, the unquenchable thirst for hu- man exploration had already made its way into the papers. A report on Wednesday 23 Ju- ly titled 'Exploring all the plan- ets of the solar system', stated that the success of the Apollo mission should translate into the exploration of more ambi- tious ventures. "The Apollo 11's successful moon landing dem- onstrated that man now has the ability to explore all the planets of the solar system – and even aim for the stars beyond," the article read. While the occupation of Mars seems to be the next frontier, Malta Astronomy Society hon- orary member Gordon Caru- ana Dingli, who has followed manned spaceflight since the flight of Apollo 8, seems to think that it may take some time before we make it to the red planet. "I don't think we have the right technology to make it there yet," Caruana Dingli said. He also said that he believes that on a political level, there al- so is not much will to spend on a Mars expedition. "Obviously, this might all change if we find traces of life on Mars, then the interest will surely pick-up." Taking humanity to Mars will most probably require an inter- national effort. "In the same way countries collaborated together to build the international space station, I believe it will need a collective effort to take man to Mars." Ellul Mercer on the other hand believes the first step to going to Mars is creating a permanent base on the moon. "I think we should first establish ourselves on the moon, and then start properly considering going to Mars." kazzopardi@mediatoday.com.mt NEWS 1969 MOON LANDING since man's the moon NASA photos of the moon landing, with Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin bouncing on the surface of the moon. Below, NASA command celebrates the successful splashdown of the returning astronauts; right, US President Richard Nixon speaks to the astronauts from inside a compartmentalised unit after their return to Earth, which served to isolate radiation from their exposure in space Malta PM Gorg Borg Olivier sends his message of congratulations to the United States Right: Getting in on the game. Even Singer, the sewing machine manufacturers, used the moon landing to market their products, with this advert on The Times of 21 July, 1969