Besides the technical challenges, the Apollo missions were a matter of National Prestige. In the Space Race between the United States and the Soviet Union, President Kennedy said we were going to the Moon and return safely before the end of the (1960's) decade, so we did. Ok, its been 50 years since I watched the first lunar landing on black & white tv. We have put satellites in lunar orbit, and men and rovers on the surface, but we need to go back.

The space race to the Moon was driven by the Cold War which in turn drove technology development. It was an immense kick-start for the semiconductor and integrated circuit industries world wide.