Tintin stars in Barcelona moon landing anniversary exhibit

It’s been 50 years since the words “that's one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind," were uttered by Neil Armstrong from the Moon back to Earth on the first manned landing of its kind.

And to celebrate this momentous anniversary, Barcelona’s science museum the CosmoCaixa is putting on an exhibit in the Catalan capital, one that takes you on a journey to the satellite, through an unlikely star: beloved Belgian comic character, in ‘Tintin and the Moon. Fifty years since the first manned expedition.’

The fictional blonde-haired boy-adventurer and reporter, however, does have a rightful place in the exhibit. In the popular comics created by artist Hergé, he set foot on the Moon some 20 years before the July 1969 Apollo 11 mission’s success – at least, in publications ‘Destination Moon,’ and ‘Explorers on the Moon.’

The exhibit not only shows the viewer reconstructions and material from the fictional adventures but brings you into the world of lunar science – and history. Starting from the first time that Galileo observed the heavenly body through the telescope he built in 1609, it takes you through time and discoveries, to the moon landing 360 years later. Here, you can also learn everything that’s currently known about the satellite.

The adjunct general director of the Bank La Caixa Foundation, Elisa Durán, expressed that, in the exhibit, they want to bring together “knowledge and artistic expression through this comic.” The collection is visible already, and will be on display until May 26, 2019.