Neil Armstrong’s famous spacesuit will be restored thanks to a crowdfunding effort which has raised just shy of $720,000.  Neil Armstrong was wearing the spacesuit when he became the first man to set foot on the moon.

The windfall means the Smithsonian Institution will not only be able to restore Armstrong’s spacesuit, but will have money to spare to preserve and display a second spacesuit used by Alan Shepard, the first American in space.

It was the first time the Smithsonian has turned to crowdfunding to help cover the cost of preserving its most valuable artifacts from the ravages of time.

The campaign began July 20th, the 46th anniversary of the historic Apollo 11 lunar landing. The conclusion on Wednesday coincided with National Aviation Day in the U.S.

Smithsonian curators hope to have Neil Armstrong’s white spacesuit and helmet ready for public viewing by the 50th anniversary in 2019. Right now, they say, it’s pretty fragile because a lot of the materials were made for temporary use, to get to the moon and back.