One theory had it that his foot would go up in flames. As Buzz wrote, ‘A modern scientist stated his theory that the lunar soil, roasted by the heat of the sun and the frigidity of space, was in such chemical imbalance that man’s footsteps might trigger a monstrous fire.’ Another worrying prediction was that the moon was so heavily covered in dust that it might swallow him up immediately.This was clearly on Armstrong’s mind as he stood on the lunar module ladder, as Armstrong actually did a practice jump on the ladder to see if the lander would be thrust deep into the dusty surface. It wasn’t.
