Astronaut Walter Cunningham training in Central Oregon, 1964. Oregon State University Libraries Special Collections & Archives Research Center Listen to audio from OPB journalists In 1961, JFK set a goal for the United States: send astronauts to the moon and back before the decade was through. But the moon was much more mysterious then, and no one knew for sure what they’d find when they got there. Scientists debated the possibilities, and speculated that they’d encounter volcanic rock.