When dawn broke (in America, because in Greece it was noon) on July 16, 1969, hundreds of thousands of spectators had already flooded the beaches and hills at a safe distance from the launch pad at the Space Center in Florida. At the same time, hundreds of millions of viewers around the world were waiting in front of their televisions to watch the great moment of the rocket launch, which would carry the 3 astronauts to the Moon. All three were experienced astronauts from the Gemini missions, and had been preparing for many years for this epic space Odyssey.