Astronaut Walter Cunningham training in Central Oregon, 1964.
Oregon State University Libraries Special Collections & Archives Research Center
Listen to audio from OPB journalists
In 1961, JFK set a goal for the United States: send astronauts to the moon and back before the decade was through. But the moon was much more mysterious then, and no one knew for sure what they’d find when they got there.
Scientists debated the possibilities, and speculated that they’d encounter volcanic rock. To prepare its astronauts, NASA turned to a place here on Earth with plenty of that: Central Oregon. From 1964 to 1971, dozens of Apollo astronauts trained on Oregon lava fields, which scientists thought might be similar to the surface of the moon. The region became known as “Moon Country.”
Now that Artemis II has sent humans back to the moon for the first time in over half a century, we’re reflecting on the role Oregon has played in lunar exploration.
To learn more, watch OPB’s “Oregon Experience” documentary, “Oregon’s Moon Country.”