Interesting question! Let's explore the possible alternate timeline if Neil Armstrong never made it to the moon.What if, instead of successfully landing on the moon on July 20, 1969, the Apollo 11 mission had failed? Or what if the entire U.S Space program never happened? Let's say that the U.S Space program never happened, which would mean that the Soviet Union would have won the space exploration race. This would likely have significant political ramifications. The U.S-U.S.S.R Cold War rivalry, which was largely defined by the international space race, would have likely played out differently.In the political arena, the U.S would have been seen as weaker compared to the Soviet Union. This could have led to an increased interest in radical communism and socialism in the U.S. Also, it would likely have had economic implications for the U.S. Space technology and its spin-off industries like GPS technologies, satellite television, and others would not have developed as fast without the Space program. In the years following what should have been the moon landing, the 1970s would have been an era of Soviet dominance of space exploration. 2000 would most likely look different since NASA wouldn't have gone on as many space missions and they wouldn't have learned about the challenges of living on Mars. The Soviet Union would be more likely to have explored and, perhaps, even set up a base on Mars.The year 2010 would probably consist of other countries joining in the space exploration efforts. It might even be possible that lead countries like Russia and the USA could have combined their efforts so that they could both take part in the scientific discoveries and advances in space technology. The next milestone, by 2020, it's possible that space tourism would have emerged so that wealthy individuals would be able to go on zero-gravity flights or even hangout in a low-earth orbiting hotel. So, to conclude, without Neil Armstrong landing on the moon, history could look very different. The Cold War era would be remembered differently, and the technological advancements from space exploration would not have developed as fast without the U.S Space program. This alternate timeline could have a significant effect on politics, the economy, and human curiosity in science and space exploration.
