'Magical' moonwalk made mark on many

On July 20, 1969, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin made history becoming the first men to walk on the moon. The moonwalk was, and still is, one of the biggest events in history. For former astronaut Alan Bean, author Andrew Chaikin and illustrators Wendell Minor and Mike Wimmer, the moment was unforgettable. Below are some of their thoughts on the landing.

"It (the moon landing) was unique because we knew we were going next. We were in Mission Control watching them (Aldrin and Armstrong), and we kept up with them every day because they were doing things that we were practicing doing.

"We were watching them closely and knew the things they were thinking about. We knew the risks they were taking. We knew how difficult this was, or at least we thought we knew. …"

— Alan Bean

"I remember it like it was last year. I was in my parents' bedroom. And we were all sitting in front of the old black-and-white Zenith TV. I still remember the first images of Neil Armstrong coming down the ladder, sort of this ghostly black-and-white image. And I remember the scene of Neil and Buzz Aldrin bouncing around on the Sea of Tranquility was sort of dreamlike. It was magical."

— Andrew Chaikin

"I remember the moon landing very clearly. But what I find fascinating, and I always tell children this, is that we landed on the moon with the equivalent of about 75K of memory.

"The very first integrated circuitry computers were developed by MIT. There was one on the lunar lander and one on the command module, and each had about 37K of memory. When you think what we were able to do 40 years ago with so little. The average cell phone now has 8 gigs or 16 gigs of memory. The advancement of computer technology in the past 40 years has been exponential, and when you realize that we did so much with so little, it's a pretty amazing feat I think."

— Wendell Minor

"I was 8 years old, and I was fascinated. My dad got off the swing shift at 11 that night and he woke us up and took us outside … and he pointed up to the moon and said 'Look where it's at, that's what's going on right now.' I remember that night, it being dark. Being woke up and then just that kind of awe as an 8-year-old thinking 'Wow, someone is way up there.' Even going to the TV and seeing the live pictures of Neil walking on the moon. It was incredible, it really was."

— Mike Wimmer