Neil Armstrong, Jim Lovell and Gene Cernan: Is Obama grounding JFK's space legacy?

Apollo astronauts Neil Armstrong, Jim Lovell and Gene Cernan all commanded moon missions. Armstrong was the first man to reach the lunar surface, and Cernan was the last to leave it.

Was President Kennedy a dreamer, a visionary, or simply politically astute? We may never know, but he had the courage to make that bold proposal 50 years ago Wednesday. The Soviet Union's Yuri Gagarin had completed an orbit of the Earth the previous month and electrified the world. The United States had taken only one human, Alan Shepard, above 100 miles altitude and none into orbit. Americans, embarrassed by the successes of our Cold War adversary, were eager to demonstrate that we too were capable of great achievements in space.

President Kennedy called in the leaders of the nascent National Aeronautics and Space Administration for their opinion on any space goal that Uncle Sam could win. They concluded that the only possibility was a manned lunar landing, and that would include all the principal elements of human space travel.

The president decided this was the right project, the right time, and the Americans were the right people.

"Now it is time to take longer strides — time for a great new American enterprise — time for this nation to take a clearly leading role in space achievement, which in many ways may hold the key to our future on earth.

… Let it be clear that I am asking the Congress and the country to accept a firm commitment to a new course of action, a course which will last for many years and carry very heavy costs."

— President Kennedy

A half century has passed since Kennedy challenged our citizenry to do what most thought to be impossible. The subsequent American achievements in space were remarkable: Mercury, Gemini, Apollo and Skylab. Our efforts enhanced international cooperation with Apollo-Soyuz, the space shuttle and the International Space Station. The compelling fascination of our space achievements among young people spurred their interest in education...