Daring dozen the twelve who walked on the moon

On the still, silent moon,no wind blows. No water flows. No life grows. Year after year the moon circles Earth. All alone. Until one day a spacecraft zooms by. Closer. And closer. Its long legs reach down. Finally it touches the ground. A man carefully places his boot on the gray dust. "That's one small step for man," he says, "one giant leap for mankind." The moon's first visitor, Neil Armstrong, has arrived! Soon Buzz Aldrin joins him. The two bounce across the surface in a jog-hop moon walk. Even with heavy backpacks, the astronauts weigh much less than they do on Earth, thanks to the moon's lower gravity. Not a minute to waste! They gather rocks, snap pictures, and proudly plant an American flag. Then their time is up. An engine fires. Dust flies. A silvery dot disappears into the blackness. Silence, again. Excerpted from Daring Dozen: The Twelve Who Walked on the Moon by Suzanne Slade, Alan Marks All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.