Which Country Captured the Best Photo of the Apollo 11 Landing Site?

Jeremy Gray

Composite image showing four segments: (1) astronaut standing on the moon's surface in a suit with a reflected visor, (2) aerial view of the lunar surface with craters, (3) marked location of the Apollo 11 lunar module, (4) close-up of shadow on the lunar surface.

In the 60 years since Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin piloted the Lunar Module, Eagle, to the Moon’s surface in 1969, space probes have routinely surveyed and photographed the legendary Apollo 11 landing site. But which country has captured the best photo of Apollo 11’s history-making Tranquility Base?

Over on X, formerly known as Twitter, user @Rainmaker1973 shared a mosaic comparing the images of the Apollo 11 landing site captured by the United States, India, South Korea, Japan, and China. Much to the chagrin of some conspiracy theorists, the third-party photo evidence for the Apollo 11 Moon landing is overwhelming.

Rainmaker1973, also known as Massimo, picked some nice photos for their illustrative comparison, but it’s worth taking a closer look at some of the various photos of the Apollo 11 landing site.

Using its Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), NASA captured numerous photos of the Apollo 11 landing site (Mare Tranquillitatis, 0.67416° N, 23.47314° E) from 2009 through 2011, including at various Sun angles. Users can scroll through the multiple images by chronological order or Sun angle on Arizona State University’s website.

A grayscale image showing the surface of the moon with numerous craters of varying sizes. In the center of the image, there is a noticeable shadow, creating a dark spot among the surrounding terrain. The surface appears rugged and uneven.
NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) captured this image of the Apollo 11 landing site on July 29, 2010. | Credit: NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University

PetaPixel has previously featured India’s amazing Apollo landing site photos, including the spectacular Apollo 11 module image shot by the country’s Chandrayaan-2 orbiter.

A high-resolution image of the Moon's surface showing a large number of craters. One prominent crater on the right side of the image casts a dark shadow. In the center, a bright object with a long shadow stretches across the lunar terrain.
The Apollo 11 Lunar Module as seen by India’s Chandrayaan-2. | Credit: Photo by ISRO, image processing by Marty McGuire

As for the South Korean image selected by Rainmaker, the nation has done much better than that. South Korea’s Danuri probe not only captured the fantastic photo of Earth seen further below but a pretty sharp shot of the Apollo 11 landing module and its surroundings.

Satellite image of the moon's surface showing the Apollo 11 landing site, labeled in Korean. The image highlights the Lunar Module's landing point with cratered terrain surrounding the location. An inset shows a photograph of the Lunar Module on the lunar surface.
South Korea’s Danuri probe took this image of the Apollo 11 lander. | Credit: KARI
A view of Earth from the Moon in black and white. The foreground shows the rugged, cratered surface of the Moon, while the Earth appears partially illuminated in the background, with its distinctive landmasses and clouds visible.
Danuri also shot this photo of the lunar surface and Earth in December 2022. | Credit: KARI

Japan’s Apollo 11 landing site photo may not be all that impressive, but the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency did a flyby of the Apollo 11 landing site, and much more of the lunar surface, and the video is spectacular.

Among the most recent photos of the Apollo 11 landing site are the ones captured by China’s Chang-e lunar exploration missions. Sure, the images China has released are somewhat pixelated, but the missions are pretty impressive. China has released a very detailed map of the entire Moon, for example. NASA’s LRO even caught the Chang’e 6 landing on the Moon last month.

A grayscale image of the lunar surface, showcasing a rocky and cratered terrain. Numerous small craters of varying sizes are scattered across the surface. A scale bar in the bottom right indicates 100 meters. Text at the bottom left reads "LROC NAC M1400946505L.
NASA’s LRO spied Chang’e 6 landing on the Moon on June 7, 2024. | Credit: NASA/CSFC/Arizona State University

Those interested in seeing the Apollo mission landing sites for themselves don’t need a space probe, either. As BBC‘s Sky at Night magazine shows, it’s possible to spot all Apollo 11-17 landing sites using a telescope.

Image credits: Featured image credits, from left to right: NASA, NASA/LRO/ASU, KARI, and ISRO.

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