Image to right: The sun shines brightly on the lunar surface and the Apollo 14 lunar module, Intrepid. Use of this equipment would require careful analysis and planning, since it wasn't designed to be reused." But after all this time on the surface, dust could have gotten into everything. "Perhaps they could recharge the oxygen and carbon dioxide scrubbers in the Apollo backpacks, or get some use out of the helmets and gloves. "Astronauts could potentially replace the batteries in the rovers and reuse them, if their gears and other moving parts are not full of dust," Starr said. Could any of the abundant materials left on the Moon from the Apollo Program have any use? The nation's Vision for Space Exploration calls for NASA to return to the Moon as a stepping stone toward Mars and beyond. His first two shots didn't fare well, but his third swing sent the ball sailing for "miles and miles and miles," Shepard reported. Alan Shepard, commander of Apollo 14, hit three golf balls that still remain in the Moon's Fra Mauro region. The reflectors are so small that aiming lasers at them from Earth is like using a rifle to hit a moving dime two miles away. These arrays provide information about the distance to the Moon and how that distance expands over time. Credit: NASAĪpollos 11, 14 and 15 left behind Laser Ranging RetroReflectors that are still working after three decades. Bean is visible in the center of Conrad's helmet visor. Image to left: Apollo 12 Lunar Module Pilot Alan Bean snaps a picture of Commander Pete Conrad, who in turn appears to be taking Bean's picture. Apollo 16 also left a gold-plated extreme ultraviolet telescope that performed the first astronomical observations from another heavenly body. The lunar crews even left behind most of their cameras, through which millions of people shared in these missions from Earth, and conserved space by bringing home only the film. A wide variety of geological tools, such as long-handled scoops, core tubes and other gear also were discarded. Other instruments monitored lunar gravity changes and Once they were no longer needed, the Lunar Module ascent stages were deliberately aimed at the lunar surface to provide scientists with a controlled seismic event. Seismometers, instruments that detect and measure moonquakes and meteor impacts, were left by each lunar landing crew. Image to right: Apollo 15 Commander Dave Scott took this picture of Lunar Module Pilot Jim Irwin near the Rover.Īpollo science was dedicated largely to lunar geology. An American flag was implanted at each landing site, and commemorative plaques were affixed to one leg of each Lunar Module bearing the message that humans from Earth visited with peaceful intentions. The lower half of the Lunar Module (the descent stage) allowed the crew to land on the Moon and served as a launch pad when crews left the lunar surface. "The more they threw out, the more rocks they could bring back," explained Stan Starr, deputy project director and chief engineer with Dynamac at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Weight limits forced so much material to be left on the Moon. There are portions of six spindly Lunar Modules, three electric Lunar Roving Vehicles and an array of scientific instruments. Credit: NASAĪpollos 11, 12 and 14 through 17 each landed successfully in a different region of the Moon, and evidence of our visit remains at each landing site. This photo of the Apollo 11 lunar module Eagle was taken by Commander Neil Armstrong. But some things were intentionally left behind. By the time NASA's Apollo Program came to a close in December 1972, six crews of astronauts, six Apollo command modules, and more than 800 pounds of Moon rocks and lunar soil had been brought back to Earth.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |