July 20, 1969 Photo when astronaut Buzz Aldrin, lunar module pilot, walks on the surface of the moon during the Apollo 11 extravehicular activity (EVA). - On July 21, 1969, US astronaut Neil Armstrong is the first man to step onto the Moon, his teammate Edwin Aldrin joining him around 20 minutes later. (Photo: AFP | File)

Houston: Houston’s Space Center counted down Saturday night to the exact moment 50 years ago that Neil Armstrong became the first person to set foot on the Moon, marking one of humanity’s greatest achievements.

Thousands celebrated the “Moonversary” with fireworks and music as a giant screen showed footage of the era-defining moment.

After spending a few moments at the foot of the ladder of lunar module Eagle, where he and Buzz Aldrin had landed six hours earlier, Armstrong stepped onto the surface of our natural satellite at 10:56 pm (0256 GMT) on July 20, 1969.

“That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.”