To the moon and back and back again.(extra credit)

As the first decade of the new millennium comes to a close, the world is on the cusp of realizing a moment only discussed in science fiction: human beings walking on the surface of another world. The United States is at the forefront of a concept seemingly surreal by transitioning from a country that sends astronauts into orbit, into a country that sends humans out into the solar system to explore.

The U.S. space program was officially started by President Dwight Eisenhower, though it really gained ground as part of a vision outlined by President John Kennedy in his famous speech to Congress in 1961 challenging America to put a man on the Moon by the end of the decade. The country responded to Kennedy's ambition and the Eagle landed on the lunar surface on July 20, 1969. It's a moment etched in mankind's memory and will forever live on as one of the world's greatest triumphs. In all, there were six successful lunar landing missions between 1969 and 1972, including a seventh failed attempt with Apollo 13. American astronauts spent nearly a week in total on the Moon's surface.

In a sad turn, as the United States took the crown of supremacy in the "space race"--no other nation in the world attempted a crewed landing mission to the Moon--the lure of such space exploration dwindled because of the cost and impracticalities. For more than four decades, six sentinels--the remnants left behind from the Apollo missions--have waited silently on the lunar surface for humans to return. After Apollo 17's landing on December 7, 1972, the United States hasn't had another touchdown on the Moon and there seemed little interest in resuming such exploits.

But, on January 14, 2004, as the Mars rovers Spirit and Opportunity began what would be an unfathomable five-year expedition exploring the red planet, President George Bush brought that era of dormancy to an end. He outlined a new vision for America's space program that has already brought sweeping changes.

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In 2010, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) Space Shuttle program will officially be retired. The Shuttles have been the marquis of space travel for the last three decades, and the agency has lived through both success and devastating failure of the craft. No later than July 11 of this year, the first test launch under the new Constellation Program umbrella-which will return humans to the surface of the Moon by 2020--is scheduled to take place. The Constellation's primary goal is almost unimaginable: to begin work on a lunar outpost that should be fully functional by 2024 so that explorers can travel from the Moon to Mars and beyond.

The Moon Mirrored in Spring