Apollo 17 at Shorty Crater
In December of 1972,
Apollo 17 astronauts Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt spent about 75 hours
on the Moon in the
Taurus-Littrow valley, while colleague Ronald Evans orbited overhead.
This sharp image was taken by Cernan as he and Schmitt roamed the
valley floor. The
image shows Schmitt on the left with the
lunar rover at the edge of Shorty Crater, near the spot where geologist Schmitt discovered
orange lunar soil. The Apollo 17 crew returned with 110 kilograms
of rock and soil samples, more than was returned from any of the other lunar
landing sites. Now forty years later, Cernan and Schmitt are still
the last to walk
on the Moon.
Read on to see the dramatic photo.
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click on image to enlarge
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