The Saturn V launched Apollo 11 and was the tallest, most powerful rocket used during the Space Race.
NASA launched Apollo 11 from Kennedy Space Center on 16 July 1969 using a three-stage Saturn V. The rocket stood about 110.6 metres tall and generated roughly 34 meganewtons of thrust at liftoff. It placed the Apollo spacecraft and its lunar module on a trajectory toward the Moon.
The Saturn V was developed under the leadership of Wernher von Braun at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center, with major stages built by Boeing, North American Aviation, and Douglas. Its enormous size allowed it to send about 45 tonnes of payload toward the Moon.
The Saturn V is sometimes confused with the smaller Saturn IB, which launched Earth-orbit missions, or the Soviet N1, which was intended for lunar missions but never completed a successful launch. Saturn V flew 13 times and never failed catastrophically.