Nixon Had a Chilling Backup Speech for a Moon Landing Disaster

Imagine the ultimate bad news call. In July 1969, as Apollo 11 hurtled toward the moon, President Richard Nixon had a speech ready. Not for the triumphant "one small step" moment, but for something far more somber: a "moon disaster." Because, apparently, even space exploration needed a Plan B for the absolute worst-case scenario. And it was grim.

Back in 1962, JFK had declared America would reach the moon by the decade's end. A hefty promise, fulfilled on July 20, 1969, when Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin touched down. Michael Collins, the third crew member, orbited above, taking photos and handling communications. It was a massive, improbable success, culminating in the planting of a flag and the collection of lunar samples. The world, quite literally, held its breath.

Nixon, from the Oval Office, made what he called "the most historic telephone call ever made" to Armstrong and Aldrin, beaming with pride. Then, days later, after their safe splashdown in the Pacific, he declared it "the greatest week in the history of the world since the Creation." Which, if you think about it, is a pretty high bar for a Monday morning.

But before all that champagne and superlatives, there was the terrifying unknown. The moon was a vast, dangerous mystery. What if the lunar module couldn't lift off? What if something went terribly wrong?

The Speech We Never Heard

Nixon's speechwriter, William Safire, penned a contingency speech titled "In Event of Moon Disaster." It was a stark, poetic acknowledgment of sacrifice, complete with a plan for a clergyman to "commend their souls" and a "burial at sea" (which, one assumes, meant a symbolic one, given the location). Luckily, it stayed locked away in the National Archives, only to be revealed by Safire 30 years later.

Here’s a taste of the speech, and it’s a gut punch:

Fate has ordained that the men who went to the moon to explore in peace will stay on the moon to rest in peace.

These brave men, Neil Armstrong and Edwin Aldrin, know that there is no hope for their recovery. But they also know that there is hope for mankind in their sacrifice.

It goes on to mourn them, not just as Americans, but as sons of Mother Earth, binding humanity through their ultimate sacrifice. It’s the kind of prose that makes you appreciate every single successful rocket launch ever since.

"Others will follow, and surely find their way home," the speech concludes. "Man’s search will not be denied. But these men were the first, and they will remain the foremost in our hearts. For every human being who looks up at the moon in the nights to come will know that there is some corner of another world that is forever mankind."

It’s a chilling reminder that while the moon landing felt like pure triumph, it was always just one misstep away from becoming one of humanity's greatest tragedies. Let that sink in next time you gaze up at the night sky.