LIFE Neil Armstrong

First Man on the Moon: His Life and Legacy

"That's one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind." When Neil Armstrong placed his booted foot on the lunar surface, he took what was already conceived as a transcendent moment in a tumultuous time and, unbelievably, he elevated it. He wasn't just an astronaut, and it wasn't just about science, the space race with the Russians, or any other one thing. It was about possibility, and joy.

Neil Armstrong, the new special edition from the editors of LIFE, tells the story of a legendary pilot that risked everything, alongside a brave team of astronauts and NASA engineers, to achieve the impossible. You'll learn all about the space race, and how Houston's finest made good on President John F. Kennedy's promise to reach the moon by the end of the 1960s. About the immense sacrifices-both in time spent and lives lost-the number of missions, and the number of failures before the ultimate success of the Apollo 11 landing. Plus: TIME senior writer Jeffrey Kluger stops by to regale us with a tale of the time he spent with Armstrong, and we take a peek behind the curtain at the new Oscar-nominated film based on the American hero's life, First Man.

LIFE's Neil Armstrong is a must-have for the adventurer in your life, and a totemic reminder that when we put our minds to it, anything is possible.