Colonization of the Moon the Soviet leadership made some of its first public pronouncements about landing a man on the Moon and establishing a lunar base. Crewed exploration of the lunar surface began in 1968 when the Apollo 8 spacecraft orbited the Moon with three astronauts on board. This was mankind's first direct view of the far side. The following year, the Apollo 11 Apollo Lunar Module landed two astronauts on the Moon, proving the ability of humans to travel to the Moon, perform scientific research work there, and bring back sample materials. Additional missions to the Moon continued this exploration phase. In 1969,
The First Men in the Moon (2010 film) they worked together to build a cast iron sphere that would fly them to the Moon. After landing on the lunar surface and discovering its oxygen atmosphere is frozen into the surface and released in direct sunlight, the two explorers are captured with nets and taken underground by the Moon's inhabitants (whom Cavor names Selenites). Upon their revival, Cavor and Bedford are fed and try to communicate with the moon creatures, but to no avail. They are prodded with long poles toward a lunar abyss. They find themselves in a perilous state after Bedford reacts and accidentally kills several Selenites