[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 95 (Wednesday, July 20, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: July 20, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
             THE 25TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE FIRST MOON LANDING

  Mr. HEFLIN. Madam President, today, July 20, marks the 25th 
anniversary of what will forever stand as one of humankind's most 
profound accomplishments--the landing of the Apollo 11 mission on the 
surface of the Moon. This incredible feat of human courage, 
determination, and technological advancement will always be remembered 
as one of the greatest scientific conquests in our history.
  Virtually everyone who is old enough remembers where they were and 
what they were doing on July 20, 1969, when all of America and much of 
the world rejoiced at the statement, ``The Eagle has landed. This is 
one small step for man; one giant leap for mankind.'' These images from 
the day a person first walked on the Moon will forever symbolize our 
national pride--America did it first.
  When the history of the 20th century is written, one defining era 
that will be prominently featured is the period when we left this 
planet and began to explore the universe. The greatest adventure of our 
time has been space exploration--the quest for the taming of the final 
frontier--and any nation that sees itself as a world power--today, the 
only world power--cannot ignore this frontier.
  In 1958, Dr. Wernher von Braun, a leading figure in the dawning days 
of the United States Space Program and the first director of NASA's 
Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, AL, said ``after thousands 
of years of clinging to our planet, man is finally about to burst the 
bonds of terrestrial gravity and embark on the greatest voyage of his 
entire existence--the exploration of the space around him.'' Since that 
time, the United States has been the leading space-faring nation, and I 
believe we should remain so in the decades ahead.
  Deeply embedded in our history, and an integral component of the 
American spirit, is the need to be pioneers, adventurers, explorers, 
and entrepreneurs. It is also in our makeup to want to lead and be 
preeminent. We did not start the industrial revolution, but we advanced 
it and improved upon it until we became a world power. Likewise, we 
were not the first in space; but Sputnik shook us and raised our 
consciousness, and we soon became the world's leading space pioneer.
  Space has been important to us in the past, and will become 
increasingly important in the future. We use space research and 
technology to ensure our national security, improve our standard of 
living, enhance our scientific knowledge, and stimulate the human 
spirit.
  While our accomplishments in space have been many, it is still a vast 
and unexplored frontier. America has been, and should remain, a world 
leader in space research, technology, and exploration.
  Manned space flight has existed almost since the beginning of our 
space travel. Our first satellite, Explorer I, was launched in 1958, 
and Alan Shepard's brief suborbital flight occurred in 1961. Since 
then, we have used unmanned space systems extensively to explore the 
solar system, but our manned space flight program has proceeded at a 
slower pace--our total time in space has been relatively short in terms 
of man-years.
  Through the U.S. Space Program, we have learned a great deal about 
the value of people in space, but there is much more to be learned. The 
space shuttle has and will continue to help us gain this knowledge. The 
flight of spacelab, aboard the space shuttle, has achieved many major 
successes and has again demonstrated the critical role we play in 
space. However, the shuttle's ultimate value is limited, both in terms 
of orbit and altitude above the Earth's surface. In this decade and 
beyond, we will need a permanently manned space station and its 
associated technologies to increase our utilization of space. Through 
researching the environment of space, we can eventually unlock its 
secrets and make its riches available to the whole planet. I am proud 
that I was the first Senator to call for this laboratory known as the 
space station to be built, and I remain firmly committed to its 
development.
  On the 25th anniversary of one of the greatest accomplishments in 
human history, I believe it most appropriate to celebrate the first 
lunar landing by renewing our commitment to the space program, and in 
particular the international space station, our next and most immediate 
civilian space objective.
  The space station is an idea whose time has come. When NASA opened 
its doors in 1958, it had been assigned the responsibility for space 
flight, and soon developed Project Mercury as its first manned 
activity. As NASA's leadership developed its programs, a space station 
was a leading candidate for a post-Mercury Program. Since that time, a 
space station has been studied and analyzed continuously. Now, the 
development of an international space station is fast becoming a 
reality.
  We are all familiar with the current funding problems with regard to 
the Federal budget. In today's fiscal climate, it is more difficult 
than ever to find adequate funding for major scientific initiatives. 
But we must look at expenditures on such initiatives as investments in 
our future, and take bold and decisive action.
  The space station is of vital national importance. Most of us would 
agree that we live in an increasingly dynamic and changing world. 
Change is all around us, but nowhere is it greater than in terms of 
technology and the ways in which it is reshaping the United States and 
world economy. Our role in managing this technological change and 
leading it are vital to our national security and well-being.
  The international space station is one of the most important programs 
we will consider during this or any other year. Our overall space 
program has yielded many benefits to society, and I remain firmly 
convinced that the potential benefits to be gained from future space 
activities and a functioning space station will far outweigh all 
previous gains combined. The station will provide a permanently manned 
laboratory for new opportunities in the areas of astronomy, 
astrophysics, and life sciences, as well as industrial and medical 
research that will provide new scientific breakthroughs that could 
revolutionize many areas of research. Society can only benefit from 
such advances.
  Our space program began with Alan Shepard's famous suborbital flight. 
Since then, our manned space successes have included the Mercury, 
Gemini, Apollo, Skylab, and space shuttle eras. Now, we must move into 
the Era of the space station--the next logical step for the space 
program.
  While today is an appropriate time to celebrate our monumental 
successes in space, we cannot ignore our failures. In memory of the 
three astronauts who lost their lives in the Apollo Program and the 
seven pioneers who paid the ultimate price in the space shuttle 
Challenger disaster, we must go forward. There is not one among them 
who would not want us to go forward. They believed deeply in the worth 
of what they were doing, and would not have accepted the risks 
otherwise. We must maintain the vision they had and continue on their 
journey. To allow failure to set us back or dull our mission would be 
to desecrate and belittle what they did.
  As we look back and celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Apollo 11 
lunar landing and the many successes of the space program since that 
day, and as we anticipate the many accomplishments we will surely enjoy 
in the future, I simply ask my colleagues to remember the words of 
President Kennedy when he said, in 1962:

       If this capsule history of progress teaches us anything, it 
     is that man, in his quest for knowledge and progress, is 
     determined and cannot be deterred. The exploration will go 
     ahead whether we join it or not. And it is one of the 
     greatest adventures of our time and no nation which expects 
     to be a leader of other nations can expect to stay behind in 
     this race for space.
       Those who came before us made certain that this country 
     rode the first waves of the industrial revolution, first 
     waves of modern invention, and the first waves of nuclear 
     power. And this generation does not intend to flounder in the 
     backwash of the coming age of space. We mean to be a part of 
     it. We mean to lead it, for the eyes of the world now look 
     into space.

  President Kennedy's dream of landing a man on the Moon and returning 
him safely to Earth was realized not once but several times. Looking 
back at this great accomplishment, I would encourage each of my 
colleagues in the Senate, each of our colleagues in the House of 
Representatives, all Americans, and people the world over to go outside 
tonight and look up at the Moon. How often have we all wondered what it 
would be like to set foot on that mysterious body? Look up and ponder 
the incredible talent, energy, and resources which converged to take us 
to the Moon 25 years ago--less than a decade after President Kennedy 
issued his challenge to the Nation to land a person on the Moon and 
return them safely to Earth.
  On this day, two and a half decades ago, three Americans went to the 
Moon. Two stepped from the lunar module into history, becoming the 
first humans to ever set foot on the Moon. As you stare at the Moon 
tonight and into the darkness beyond that is what we call space, ask 
yourself, ``can we settle for landing on the Moon, as awesome as that 
feat was, or must we strive to reach beyond, into the unknown? Can we 
stop at the Moon?'' I believe we have always been, and will continue to 
be, driven by an insatiable curiosity--a desire to see what is ``out 
there.''
  We must push forward with our space program or risk losing the 
incredible advances that lay ahead. The risks are high, as they are 
with any worthwhile enterprise. But the losses are far too great if we 
do not. Building upon the lunar landing of Apollo 11 25 years ago and 
those which followed, our Nation's space program will go ever onward to 
reach new plateaus and new horizons in our eternal quest for the 
understanding of the cosmos and humankind's place in it.
  Mr. GRAMM addressed the Chair.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Texas [Mr. Gramm] 
is recognized.

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