The first human to walk on the moon was American astronaut Neil Armstrong. On July 20, 1969, as commander of the Apollo 11 mission, Armstrong became the first person to step onto the lunar surface, famously uttering the now-famous phrase, "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind." Along with Armstrong, two other American astronauts, Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin and Michael Collins, were also part of the Apollo 11 mission and helped make history with their groundbreaking achievement