Radio Solar Telescope Network Radio Solar Telescope Network The Radio Solar Telescope Network (RSTN) is a network of solar observatories maintained and operated by the 557th Weather Wing, ACC. The RSTN consists of ground-based observatories in Australia, Italy, Massachusetts, New Mexico and Hawaii. It became apparent in the early 1960s that certain space weather events might interfere with the stated U.S. objective of a manned mission to the moon. In particular, the sun emits continuous electromagnetic energy and electrically charged particles, which can cause disturbances in the near-Earth environment and disrupt satellite communications. Foremost among these concerns was the possibility of a geomagnetic storm
Neil Armstrong pilot, unofficially the lowest ranked member, and Armstrong could not justify placing Lovell, the commander of Gemini 12, in the number 3 position of the crew. The crew of Apollo 11 was officially announced on January 9, 1969, as Armstrong, Collins, and Aldrin, with Lovell, Anders, and Fred Haise as the backup crew. According to Chris Kraft, a March 1969 meeting among Slayton, George Low, Bob Gilruth, and Kraft determined that Armstrong would be the first person on the Moon, in part because NASA management saw him as a person who did not have a large ego. A press conference