Apollo 17: The Last Time Man Walked On The Moon | The Apollo Experience

foreign ignition sequence has started [Music] but we have left [Music] final go guys go control go Telecom go econ go the eagle has landed we copy you down eagle that's one small step for man Chester in the beginning God created the Heaven and the Earth and God said let there be light and there was light [Applause] okay yeah we've had a problem here say again please [Music] [Applause] [Music] it might sound corny but the view is really out of this world I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal before this decade is out of Landing a man on the moon and returning it safely to the Earth no single Space Project in this period will be more impressive to mankind or more important for the long-range exploration of space and none will be so difficult or expensive to accomplish thank you um [Music] [Music] [Applause] of course when I was selected for the program I had very high aspirations of flying a lunar Landing but Apollo at that time when Journey was going on although it was in existence and in work for those of us who were very deeply involved in Germany it was still quite a step away I used to give a talk now and then to different groups throughout the country and talked about someday we're going to walk on the surface of the Moon not just go there but walk on the surface of the Moon and uh I believed it even though I found it hard to believe myself I did believe it because I believed in what I was doing but I turned around one day and I found out gee I was one of those guys who was walking in space and uh with a little luck in God willing I'll be one of those guys who's going to walk on the surface of the Moon and even having done some of this it's still almost unrealistic to me [Music] in spite of the fact that I've had a chance to fly a couple times I've been close to the Moon I haven't made that moon landing and believe me it's no easier today than they were in a past and certainly they're not for a crew who's never made that lunar Landing before [Music] [Music] I think just like everybody else has flown I and all the people who fly with me and after me will bring very special experience to the program experience gathered generally prior to becoming an astronaut and then added to while they have been an astronaut my experience just happens to be in the field of geology and in particular in the observation of materials of the earth as they exist in the field that's what basically a field geologist does in the case of exploring the far frontiers of space a geologist has an advantage because that's his livelihood and that's what he's been doing most of his life I don't feel that unusual a lot of people think of it as being unusual but it's really just another specialty hopefully we open up with this the possibilities of applying other Specialists to other problems [Music] thank you Apollo 17 is what we call a j Mission Series where it's a follow-on to Apollo 15 and 16 where we really sort of change the capability of the spacecraft we have more payload on this flight as a result we have quite an extensive and heavier scientific package in our spacecraft which of course means it takes longer time to to deploy it to set it up to get it working with that in mind and to spend additional time on exploring the geological finds we hope will be in tourist Electro our Landing site we hope to spend a little bit longer time on the lunar surface we added a lunar rover to the lunar module so that we could go further distances from the lunar module after we landed get in the areas in terms of geological exploration and exploration of the Moon that we couldn't get to before we've been training for about 12 months maybe slightly longer than that it's hard to remember once you get involved in this thing how long you've been working on it but of course training for any space flight Mission begins several years before that and for me I guess the concentrated training for a space flight began with Apollo 15 and the December of 1969. foreign launch control or T-minus one hour 22 minutes and Counting out at the pad the space vehicle is surrounded by searchlights producing some 225 foot candles of light and lift off approximately 7 500 quit channels will be produced from the flame of the Saturn V engines this is almost equivalent to Daylight our countdown continuing to go smoothly now as we approach the one hour mark this is Kennedy launch control some people think that that because Apollo 17 is the final Apollo lunar Landing that it should be a spectacular some kind so someone decided that it would be a night launch well it is a night launch but it was not planned that way it really came out by accident the fact that you pick a landing site and our Landing site is in a relatively remote area of the moon in the northeast corner the launch time of day is really dictated to us nevertheless that night launch is going to be very very exciting as much so for the people who are watching it as the three of us who have the opportunity to fly this launch will be aiming Apollo 17 for the Taurus litro area of the moon named after the Taurus Mountains in southern turkey and the Austrian astronomer litro the site is expected to yield some of the oldest and some of the youngest lunar samples returned during the Apollo flights to the Moon [Music] we have a chance to complete this first phase of lunar exploration and last chapters of the lunar history book that Apollo has the capability of writing we won't know it for 1500 years but some of the things that we are finding that were completely unexpected that we didn't plan to find will almost certainly be the most important thing from the eyes of the history of Science and very probably in the eyes of history of man it's Apollo Saturn launch control first stage second stage third stage now all going through internal power the flight of Apollo 17 will be able to be seen some 500 miles away as it goes into Earth orbit or the eyes of the world now look into space the Moon and to the planets Beyond and this generation does not intend the founder in the backwash of the coming age of space we need to be a part of it we need to lead it entering the final phases of the countdown various elements of the team reporting into their go no goes for launch first stage reporting they are go rain safety they are go launch director Walter caprian has given a go for launch Apollo 17 a launch team wishes you good luck and Godspeed [Music] 25 seconds and counting we are still gold there we go 20 seconds guidance alert the guidance system not going internal 15 14 13 12 11 10. 9 Ace ignition sequence star five four three two one zero lift up we have liftoff and it's lighting up the areas it's just like daylight here at Kennedy Space Center the Saturn V is moving off the pad it is now clear the tower there goes the tower right to the tower you're going right down to 517 go first stage looks good altitude 1.1 miles Roger Jr looking green Right Down the Line 17 you said your times are nominal nominal times eight four three six and nine plus two zero Roger let me tell you this night launch is something to behold crew will experience maximum g-forces of about Four G's at shutdown standby for mode one Charlie 17. coming up on first stage shutdown [Applause] 17 Houston you are go for orbit go for orbit those are kind words good show babe a little late but a good show not standing right sure felt like it [Music] oh we've confirmed Apollo 17 is in a near nominal orbit the trans lunar injection burn is targeted to last five minutes 51 seconds accelerating Apollo 17 to the required speed to get it into an orbit that'll intercept the Moon [Applause] 17. you're looking great on a final status check here and your go for tli foreign [Music] looks good on the s4b the velocity increasing up now to 26 000 feet per second beginning to climb ever more rapidly this burn was initiated at an altitude of about 97 nautical miles above Earth when finished the spacecraft will be at about 150 miles above Earth and on its way to the Moon some 213 000 nautical miles away [Music] 17 Houston you have a go for tnd okay go for candy okay what do you do okay we uh we are maneuvering Houston oh what a beauty look at that damn Madagascar yeah in Africa [Applause] and we got a few uh very bright particles or fragments or something that uh go Drifting by as we maneuver looks like the Fourth of July on Ron's window oh but we've got the booster in his sheep pretty Challengers just sitting in her nest our Roger I tell you too much Bob from the center seat other than uh Captain America is very intent on getting Challenger at the moment yeah I'm coming in a little slow but [Applause] uh Ron Evans not the controls of America moving in for the docking with a lunar module Challenger [Applause] prime one there's your cup and we got it oh man didn't we capture Houston or Roger this is Apollo control uh America and Challenger are on their own at an altitude of 13 000 nautical miles from Earth 17 to us to the crew is probably best summed up in the meaning of our patch as we designed it and is the ideas that we put into it we felt certainly at Apollo 17 in spite of the fact that it's the last flight in the Apollo program is really not the end but but rather the beginning it's sort of a culmination of what we consider man's greatest achievement certainly In Our Lifetime and looking in the future these uh achievements and the potentials of them have literally no bounds [Music] we have the god of Apollo on our patch he represents not just the Apollo program but mankind himself represents knowledge represents wisdom and Apollo is looking out into the future he's not looking behind and he's not simply looking at the moon someplace that mankind has been but he's looking down beyond the moon and into the future we have along with him up in the corner of our patch a a golden Moon sort of representing a golden era or a space flight that we are bringing to a close now the achievements that have happened in this past decade were not by accident America brought us where we are today in the United States of America is going to lead us into the achievements and the accomplishments of the future [Music] foreign this is Apollo control cernan and Schmidt have gone more than the lunar module Challenger going through the housekeeping transfer of items from the Command Module into the lender module and we'll proceed with the checklist of activating the spacecraft communication system Evans had the detail of removing the probe and drogue earlier he's by his Lonesome back in the Command Module Gordy doesn't look like I have a chance to go to church today but under the circumstances I guess it'll be okay next time he's a good father you might have put a good word in for us okay I'll do that I know you still have gotten the Moon boy is it big we're coming in right down on top of it Roger that's about right don't worry you'll miss it all right just want to hear you say it because I'm going to hold you to it [Music] hello America how do you read yesterday hello Houston this is America you can breathe easier America has arrived on station for the challenge ahead [Music] Challenger Houston you have a go for undocking except [Music] three two one we got it there we go okay looks good on board okay looks good on the ground now the landing site of Apollo 17 Taurus litro is uh and I speaking from the from the guy who's actually going to fly the spacecraft to land it's very very challenging it's sort of a box canyon surrounded by mountains on three sides and a landslide that comes off one of the mountains that has some Rubble that is strewn across some of the craters just in front of where we're going to land so from a pilot point of view it's very very challenging foreign it is absolutely spectacular looking at that Command Module America down there coming across the surface sounds great hey Ryan this is grab a rock we got the landing site we're coming right over the front of it super targeting God we've got the family month we've got the course of machine we can see the scarf we can see the light mantle I've got the great cross Camelot Sherlock Believe It or Not Houston they're all there Houston I could even see Poppy right where we're gonna shut this baby down very good man Gordo this is absolutely spectacular sure sounds like it during the next frontside pass comes a moment of truth Challenger will descend to the surface of the Moon and touch down at the Taurus literal Landing site okay all flight controllers gonna go for power decent retro no Fido go guys go control go Telecom go go surgeon go Capcom or go for power decent Challenger Houston your go for Pei we are go up here for PDR pass your arm on okay Houston Master arm is out I've got two good lights Roger no man are we down among them babe ignition ignition Houston attitude looks good Roger you're looking good here okay Gordon we're out of eleven thousand at nine and the computer likes it stand by for pitch over or we coming in both baby I'll need the pro I'll give it to you picture it is proceeded and there it is Houston there's Camelot final Target I see it we got them all 42 degrees 37 degrees 250 500.00 fuel is good we are getting close 500 going down at five it feels good 110 feet stand by for some deaths 80 feet [Music] just a little dust 40 feet going down at three very little dust very little does touchdown feels good 20 feet stand by 10 feet contact engine sub engine arm proceed command override off Auto [Music] okay Houston the charger has landed Roger Johnson boy you better this Gordo or you said shut down I shut down and we dropped didn't we yes sir but we is here and is we here how's that look pressures look great manifold right on right I had the meatball all the way beautiful Jack are we gonna have some night Boulders in this area Okay the old camera is off okay Challenger Houston I'm going to hand you over to the good Dr Parker here have a good trip outside there Gordy thank you you do outstanding work and uh we sure do appreciate it babe pleasure aggregate to our favorite part here click click click the helmet is locked your advisor is locked oh man you ready for this I hope so Commander is on the porch oh man oh man [Music] oh man [Applause] I'm on the footpad in Houston as I step off at the surface at Taurus literal we'd like to dedicate the first steps of Apollo 17 . do all those you made it possible oh my golly unbelievable unbelievable but is it brightens the Sun how you doing jack all right back you're looking good beautiful guys beautiful patches closed hey Jack don't lock it I'm not gonna lock it we gotta we gotta go back there you lose the key and we're in trouble [Music] well I tell you Gene I think the Next Generation ought to accept this is a challenge let's see him leave footsteps like these someday a geologist Paradise if I ever saw one I never thought I'd do geology this way [Music] the Taurus literal site on the north eastern part of the moon at the edge of one of the large lunar basins called Serena tatus was selected as representing both a new part of the Moon which we had not explored yet and having major features that would allow us to complete this first phase of lunar exploration and last chapters of the lunar history book that Apollo has the capability of writing those features are the edge of the serenity space and where we have a very strong possibility of finding some of the oldest if not the oldest rocks that have so far been sampled and observed on the moon and it also has the dark manteling deposit that is potentially some of the youngest volcanic rocks that we've seen on the moon and then of course there's this other thing of the unexpected and who knows what that's going to be and that's really what makes it exciting okay here we go Gallagher's baby is on the roll okay I'm going to take a little spin around here don't run over me don't worry [Music] [Music] the drivers get tested for what it was built for now yep after you handles just the way it's advertised maybe even better [Music] 17 we have a picture oh beautiful babe it's all yours [Music] okay you're gonna have to get it down to my level tall guys are all alike you're pretty agile there Twinkle Toes You Bet Your Life I am okay the flag they're deploying is the flag that has been in the mission control center here during past missions how about right there it does weigh when you do that yeah but do you ever see a vibrate like that I've never put a flag up in the moon before we got a beautiful picture you guys up down there let me tell you Bob this flag is a beautiful picture foreign moments of my life I guarantee you [Music] well we're off to see the wizard hey do you need me G no I'm gonna go deploying out them have at it first I gotta find an alstep site Schmidt carrying the allsup about 100 meters east of the Lamb Gene cernan will drive out to the alceap site in the Rover foreign [Applause] it just popped right off if it wasn't for that Fender I'd be ready to go makes me sort of mad a little piece of the rail is cracked off and I'm just going to put a couple pieces of a good old fashion American great tape on it see whether we can't make sure it stays because I don't want to lose it except the old-fashioned America great tape doesn't stick to lunar dust covered fenders Gene cernan taping the fender on [Applause] that fender stays on I'm gonna take a picture of it because I'd like some sort of mending award it's not too neat but uh well let's hope keep your fingers crossed and I'll be more careful around the fenders okay copy that site selection in all the missions entails the utilization by NASA of a number of scientific advisory groups and the inputs of many individuals across the country scientists primarily from the scientific point of view in terms of the instruments that we're going to place on the surface The Landing site was picked because it gives us a tremendous network of scientific instrumentation that is still active from all the previous Apollo missions spread across the face of the Moon we can see activity of earthquakes and meteor impacts and it gives us a pretty good cross-section to pinpoint where this activity is and exactly what's happening how's the TV working beautiful decline or phrase It's a panoramic scene of beauty come on now Bob hey Bob what do you think of the terrain looks less with very flat and smooth that's why you're an astronomer oh well in the moon we have a window into the very early history of a planet in the near-earth part of the solar system from 3.3 billion years ago back to say 4.6 billion years ago that is a history which is almost totally obscured to us on Earth on the moon that's where lunar history starts and that's why it's exciting to earth scientists who have for years been trying to find out what happened to the Earth in that very early time and an understanding of the processes that really affected the Total distribution of materials on the earth and it's in those materials that lie our resources and in the long term understanding of the earth so that we can exploit those resources and exploit them in obviously a now I think a much more enlightened way than maybe we did in the past but nevertheless we must exploit them in order to preserve the civilization we're used to that's reason number one a little bit involved but it is probably the primary material justification scientific justification secondly an equally important related to the Earth is an understanding of the history of the Sun and within the soils of the Moon and within the rocks of the Moon the very surface layers of the Moon we are starting to see the effects of solar history on those materials and there is no way we could get this information on the Earth are in orbit around the Earth because what we see there is What's Happening Now what we see on the moon we can go through the record of the soil and see what has happened a hundred million years ago and up to probably at least a million years ago in some places on the moon and if we don't understand the Sun and how it affects materials and what the history of that sun has been as it has affected our own environment on Earth it's going to be very difficult to understand how to preserve the environment that we now know because the sun is still the prime mover the Prime Force for change in the environment we have to deal with [Music] oh Bob I hope I could give you a couple good holes and I know you do too concerning drilling two eight foot holes for the heat flow experiment hey Bob it's obvious that I'm going through some pretty tough stuff no Roger we're seeing that Gina looks in there I think just there really working down there oh you betcha man I'm in something tough down there now what what boy are you in number three where do we find such men if I let go of that drill and I wouldn't anchor to the ground it'll throw me over the receipt it's funny how every action there's an equal and opposite reaction isn't it hey I've heard that before man yeah that's what I've been doing oh no come on baby now that I got it okay okay stay there stay there okay back pass thank you getting down into your work Bob I'll send my comments till later oh my we got him three cores we got the neutron flux down and we've got two heat probes and a now step but I feel pretty good about that that makes me feel pretty good okay congratulations okay Bob we're about 15 meters from a 20 meter blocky Rim crater it's about uh three to four meters deep okay I copy that Jack very good oh he's going slowly though very slow outstanding [Applause] [Music] because they were farther up under the hill I think but that otherwise that's remarkable if you can hook your uh that's what I'm going to do I'm gonna try and get it right hit it on the right side it'll go this way maybe there you go you're good man he's right there try another one don't lose that one let me get that one for you but I guess got it okay back four seven six is the rock sample with a little bit of the soil near it of a ship ship off the Rock be careful down in there and it's the uh budget Jeep if I go down there that thing's about 15 feet deep right is the other chip got it okay oh look at the dark minerals in there are a little dark black yeah they may be Almanac or fresh piercing give me a pressure a pair of seats okay you want my back again you better make him clear to Parker than we got to pull out yeah it's 29.5 minutes from now but remember they left this side a little bit late okay and 17 a reminder at a factory you're thinking this is only a 30 minute stop and it's about two zero minutes remaining yes sir well we got a sample something okay [Music] see if we can't fill this up for Christmas [Music] definitely [Music] so what I really bring as a specialty is the ability hopefully of being able to integrate what I see which in turn not only tells me what I should sample or what I should say or what I should photograph about what I see but it will lead me to other observations and this is something you gain by experience no matter what field you're in field geology aircraft flying test piloting botany poetry law you name it what you gain by experience is the rapid synthesis of what you're exposed to and a projection of that exposure into the next step and so I don't feel myself very unusual being a scientist because we've had Specialists before and I'm really a geologist going to the moon and we've got other types of scientists going on the Skylab program physicists solar physicists and medical doctor we're just gradually evolving a phase of the exploration of space where we're now trying to apply Specialties to the particular problems we have to deal with [Music] I was strolling on the moon one day [Music] that's right win them much to my surprise a pair upon the eyes [Music] almost looks like it's getting dark out isn't it hope not oh we are in trouble [Music] that's a pretty good day's workouts you know you know I don't think we need an exercise period [Music] man I hate this stuff I gotta make a new Fender tonight my tape didn't hold it was too Dusty oh man that's terrible okay we'll take a look at it here while you're sleeping get down a little bit more and you got another two or three issues I can't get any lower Willie me buttons are in the way okay keep going there you are you're in godspeed the crew of Apollo 17. the hatch is closed and locked Hallelujah Devin stable Houston how does it look to you looks good to us 17 and uh like you to know you had a seven hour and 12 minute Eva I think of a tremendous job for what we might call a challenging EPA God that's no pun it really was it really was I know it man I know it I tell you I really wish you guys could have been here with us you worked as hard at it as we did if not harder harder I think that's an Apollo control of 124 hours 23 minutes and board Challenger on the lunar service Jack Schmidt and Gene cernan are in the process of getting the lunar module reconfigured ready for their sleep period which flight plan calls for them to begin at about three and a half hours from now all right foreign [Music] Challenger come come down and looks better how's it luck to you okay you stood on this by Tuesday evening as I step out onto the planes the tourists literal Apollo 17 is ready to go to work oh what a nice day the bunny they're not a cloud in the sky except in the Earth [Music] okay Challenger Houston uh we've been working while you've been sleeping on uh six for the missing Fender uh John Young's been over working it out in a suit with the mock-up Rover not good babe appreciate it okay I'll now turn the microphone over to Captain Young hey uh Gino this is John oh just fine you guys are doing a superb job really beautiful hey we spent some time on this uh Fender problem and uh worked out a pretty uh simple minded procedure which involves essentially taking uh four of those under surface Maps taking them together with great tape so that you end up with a piece of paper about 15 inches by 10 and a half inches and clamping the edges of it on top of the fender with the aot lamp clamps it's uh simple and straightforward and the beauty of it is you're only spending about two minutes in the clamping operation and it could save you up to about 12 dusting I think maybe what do you think hey thank you Dave uh I was going to work on it right now pull it right there let me get the okay McDonald's it'll stop some of it if it stays on Crews using maps to make that Fender the clamps are from the optical alignment telescope lamp as you can see it's only a paper fender but the Moon is real right there where I clamp it down and it's tight hey girl stay I think it'll stay okay sounds like a good attempt man we'll hope it works does that look good there John from what he did it looks exactly what he said he says we gotta take a picture of that Fender if it works again you're good as is we're ready for you guys to go [Music] okay we are moving right now okay we're marking that crew has started for station two the most distant of the stations more than seven kilometers away [Music] yeah it sure is okay Defender fix is working so far then I'm uh averaging probably 10 to 11 clicks it's uh I was not exactly straight line navigation but I think I can hold most of it oh Roger beautiful [Music] the Taurus literal site for Apollo 17 is one where at the mountain front you'll be hearing the name South Massif and North Massif as we explore that part of the moon at these fronts are massive there is an excellent probability because of the impact event that formed the serenity spacing we will see rocks that form the early lunar crust big emphasis there will be to see these very old rocks that will help push this history book of the Moon back right up to the very earliest possible time that we can examine on the moon that we know about potentially as old as 4.4 or 5 million years old Jack we'll watch it hold it hold it and go around that one wrinkle your toes now oh I wouldn't worry Jason okay the surface is not changing in terms of the detail the surface texture of the fine-grained regular most of the brightest craters have a little Central pit in the bottom which is glass lines look at that Trader oh man I'll tell you are those machines getting to look big now holy holy man this has been a trip man I tell you you know we're really up on top of this thing you guys been driving 64 minutes yeah we're almost ready to park okay beautiful we're right where we wanted to be for station two it looks like a great place they parked station two is right at the base of the South let's see [Music] Bob I want to get this camera fixed okay any other service I can be can I change your own uh I think Casino it looks much better man that's the way to come downhill just don't stub your toes man there's some Boulder rolling rocks here Jack [Music] hey Gene yeah set up right there let's get that let's get that big class holy crap yeah sure good eye good eye big white class gray Matrix Richard good eye man that's the prize like got a bag got a bag the soil from right underneath the Rock [Music] it's the old Boulder rolling trick so if they're over [Music] 17 if you want to just take a minute you might look up on the sky and notice beautiful mother earth hey there she is oh boy [Music] there is foreign [Music] [Music] um all right six five four three two one ignition sequence has started [Music] oh God we have liftoff [Music] I don't know Ecom go vehicle has landed wake up and get down eagle that's one small step for man Sion in the beginning God created the Heaven and the Earth and God said let there be light and there was light [Applause] okay yeah we've had a problem here say again please and it's been a long way but we're here [Applause] [Music] it might sound corny but the view is really out of this world I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal before this decade is out of Landing a man on the moon and turning it safely to the Earth no single Space Project in this period will be more impressive to mankind or more important for the long-range exploration of space none will be so difficult or expensive to accomplish thank you hello Houston I've got to the moon boy is it big Capcom or gopher power decent Challenger Houston your goal for PDI okay I've got two good lights fuel is good we are getting close 40 feet going down at three and the computer likes it very little does standby for touchdown contact hey Houston the Challenger has landed oh man as I step off at the surface at Taurus literal we'd like to dedicate the first step to all those who made it possible [Music] have at it we got him three cores we got the neutron flux down and we've got two heat probes okay congratulations oh you won't believe it ah there goes offender caught it with my hammer and it just popped right off Roger Houston uh we've been working on uh six for the missing Fender I think it'll stay Defender fix is working so far beautiful look at that Trader oh man hit it on the right side it'll go this way baby good eye there you go present man that's the way to come downhill just don't stub your toe three we're two hours and 46 minutes into this Eva Jack Schmidt taking a rake sample heart rate's running in the 90s boy I tell you it's just not any rocks the couple keep going yeah you got about four rocks about uh two inches and smaller okay moving within three minutes three minutes okay you got it okay forget the soil forget the soil watch it's moving in three minutes so let's go no get the soil guys don't forget the soil get the soil yeah I'm sorry I thought you said skip it it's your bag yep one scoop Schmidt they call me that's good that's back 508. but we ought to start moving out of here yep let's go let's go [Music] the basic major objectives are to follow on to the previous flights especially Apollo 15 and especially Apollo 16 and try and put together the works and the words and the paragraphs of all of our lunar exploration we hope that geologically speaking we'll be able to uncover rock types and different types of geologic finds that date back from the very beginning of the moon to the to the present time and of course the major objective here scientifically is to be better able to understand our own Earth our own evolution of life as our Earth knows it our own environment and maybe better predict what might happen in the future concerning civilization here on Earth [Music] okay Bob we're ready we're rolling excellent excellent [Music] oh my golly look at that Valley isn't that something man you talk about a mysterious looking place [Music] oh boy that really gives me a strange feeling too though they're not intentional I understand I'm not sure I got enough guts to make him intentional all right but we're almost there and let me tell you this is quite a river ride it sure sounds like it is quite a machine I'll tell you right over there station three let me park down here Jack [Music] please the continued investigation of the Sun by looking at the soils on the moon will be enhanced at the Taurus literal site because of the existence of several surfaces that have been exposed to the Sun for varying lengths of time the soil is built up by repetitive impact bombardments each one of which throws out a little layer of ejecta and every time it does that exposes a new Surface to the Sun and these layers build one upon another through time and of course cosmic rays solar wind are changes in the magnetic field affect the soils on the moon and if we don't understand the sun it's going to be very difficult to understand how to preserve the environment that we now know because the sun is still the Prime Force for change in the environment we have to deal with now there are two basic ways that we have of sampling the soil cover on the moon one is just with a scoop that I have I generally carry around and this is capable of sampling down to say 20 to 40 centimeters depending on how much time you want to spend digging and you can be fairly selective with it now it's fairly time consuming but for certain purposes it's the best way to do it you can dig a trench and you can sample individual portions and observe and learn as you sample [Music] there's a quite a uh marbling of light and dark trial uh it looks as if there's a uniform three centimeter layer of light material now when I say uh dark I mean a medium gray okay copy that sounds like a great sample site now on the other end of the spectrum we have this very dark cover mantle as we call it over the site which from all the evidence that we now have indicates that this is fine grained fragmental debris that resembles the kind of volcanic ash that you find in the Western United States and we can predict that the age of that surface is very young relative to other rocks on the moon it may be younger than one billion years now that still sounds like pretty old rocks and on Earth it is a billion year old rock is a very old rock whereas on the moon we're saying that would be one of the youngest rocks that we found so it's it's sometimes difficult to maintain this dual perspective of the Earth being a very Dynamic and very young geologically speaking environment whereas the moon has been very static literally billions of years the history is still important it's static history but it's extremely important to us as I hope I have indicated Bob okay great oh man that's pretty nice another Technique we have of sampling the surface of the Moon is the use of some short core tubes and they'll get down to a depth of 70 centimeters and get a very well preserved geometrically true sample and and that is probably one of the most valuable samples we have down to that depth for one thing at about 70 centimeters we learned on Apollo 15 you have a minimum temperature zone it's very stable the ground above it is highly insulating and that temperature is about minus 20 degrees centigrade which means it's a coal trap it means it's volatile elements that are moving around within the saw will tend to concentrate there so we can start to learn about these Trace elements about the lunar atmosphere about what kind of gases does the planet evolve the Moon is not big enough to hold the gases but it is is almost certainly evolving gases and we need to know more about that if we're going to understand the origins of our own hydrosphere and atmosphere on the Earth [Music] do you see it Bob it's full see that Roger we see a long thing in your hand there Gene the only one to see the bottom end right now well I'll be a son of a gun it looks like what I'm walking on it's obviously not Pottery it's obviously very uh very cohesive because it's it's the bottom of the core is not smooth it's very jaggedy and fragmental like okay copy that you know very good oh another exercise in dexterity good Lord Jack Schmidt having a few problems [Music] well would you go over to help clinical toes please and be advised that the switchboard here at msc's been lit up by calls in the Houston Ballet Foundation requesting your services for next season I did also we hope it was worth the effort oh it's all worth the effort okay we're on our way here I'll get on okay okay let's go [Applause] we'll get a picture back at station four which is the crater shorty estimated driving time 16 minutes [Music] TV coming in now shorty is clearly a darker Rim crater but inside bear you're gonna get a picture now oh yeah okay oh hey wait a minute hold on there is boring soil well don't move it till I see it it's all over wait stop hold it till I see it I've stirred it up with my feet hey it is I can see it from here it's orange man let me put my advisor up it's still orange sure it is crazy I've got to dig a trip Houston fantastic sports fans it's Trish time [Music] [Music] right and it's on both sides before you disturb it let me just get a couple close-ups thank you a little closer Dino there you go okay back that one and that orange band is about a meter wide I think bottom meter you can't get to the end of it I haven't been able to yet all right just to be sure why don't we sample this side of it too there isn't enough times to do it no matter which way you want to do it you need more time regardless of what we got that's good maybe you might want to shoot off a few frames of uh north and south and see if they look interesting I can't tell from the TV if they look interesting if they look interesting and what kind of thing is that to say [Music] [Music] thank you [Music] I guess we'll let him leave here huh well they don't want us to stop here I guess Roger and we're pressing on towards station five station five is Camelot good old Camelot [Music] do you think that's capitalized or not I think that might be camel look at that look at that here I am folks in the middle of Overfield minding my own business you've got 25 minutes at the station guys uh the priority will be subfloor documented samples and sunflower range soil okay we'll get to work man that's a hard food how about this junk down there yeah beautiful call Beautiful call you learn where to hit rock [Music] we'd like to leave immediately just not better [Music] Joe I'll tell you it's also a pretty philosophical thought to think you're riding around out here uh I Disturbed everything if there was someone here way back when sometime they didn't leave much sign of their whereabouts but uh that's an interesting thought too as you drive around all of a sudden across your own roller track and figure out those are the only ones that have maybe ever been here very true today [Music] it went fast hey there's some River tracks hey somebody's been here before man we've covered 19.3 kilometers Jack and there's Challenger hey hello Challenger okay Joe I'm waving good night to you okay we'll uh say good night to you from down here just want to end by saying what a terrific job you did today and uh really looking forward to tomorrow have a good eight hours rest thank you Joe tomorrow we answer all the unanswered questions right if not more [Music] thank you [Music] foreign [Music] [Applause] [Music] good morning good morning it's too dark outside we start work early around here how to think there myself it's uh Wednesday it's about uh 9 15 in the morning Wednesday thank you that's why we're here answer important questions that's right [Music] foreign [Music] [Music] okay you know that's uh looking back to the door there's a crater you can really see the ejector blanket itself goes out maybe two or three greater diameters and it looks like it has a kind of array type pattern to it greater I don't even know if it's got a name or not though I'm working on my map you know the moon's got a lot more color than that I've been led to believe [Music] everything was the same color that's far from being true perhaps color is in the eye of the beholder I think there's a considerable amount of Truth to that [Applause] good enough [Applause] and go ES [Applause] hello there the Challenger looks as good as ever no problems at all through the night and it's about 4 30. a Wednesday afternoon as I step out onto the planes of tourist withdrawal beautiful Valley amen there Gene amen and the crews on the way to station six that the foot of what's believed to be a long Boulder Trail up the north Massif TV coming in we're right over here though do you want me to block the wheels you got the brake on I hope you bet you it's a beautiful East-West Split Rock and this Boulder got its own little track right up the hill why don't we sample the split first right here yeah okay I'm gonna get the shadowed material okay you got a bag that's him back 312 Bob d312. wait oh I don't know if I could leave a pill enough I can't finally smiley why are we on a slope you okay I don't think are we on a slope outstanding man that's rough country in there [Applause] yeah we're getting good at that up here on top yeah it looks like there's been a geologist here before us Jack Schmidt shooting panoramic photography we see your gold visors up you may want to put it down out here in the Sun Bob I'll uh I'll use it we [Music] [Applause] good Lord okay yep remind me to dust my camera too will you don't forget to dust your camera station Seven is eight tenths of a kilometer East still along the base of the north machine okay we're gonna Head East and look for station Seven to get a different sample of rocks 542 is another bag of goodies copy that are just collecting in this area that's a splendid idea sir I don't mind going uphill because it's so much fun coming down Oh Me Oh my God I wouldn't be absolutely positive but it sure looks like I see a diclid in here I call it a nightclub if you pin me down thinning down I wish I could break a sample rat off here's another one it is a dikelet there's three or four of them very good there's a football-sized rock there was 50 varies hey did you see the way I'm gonna cut the thing okay then press on okay we're on a roll Bob copy that we're off we're off we came down all right [Music] oh I don't know I'm impressed [Music] where'd he go Jack what oh there you are I thought maybe you found that crater I'm looking at are you ready for this I'm not sure I am but go ahead go roll look I would roll on this rope why don't you touch your hands [Music] [Applause] that's a pretty one inside we haven't seen anything like this I am it I bet you've been holding out on me too bad I don't have my skis can't keep my edges this is the best way for me to travel uphill or downhill tracks like this two-legged hot I don't like that open thing oh the loping's the only way to go but this two-legged thing is great man I cover Grime like a kangaroo hey what are you working on Jack The Rake The Rake yeah fully slowly bag number four is absolutely full we're running out of bags are we got your pockets completely filled with dirt extra sample everything's getting awful Dusty I keep trying to blow the dust off my camera which is very frustrating very ineffective too everything is just full of dust there's got to be a point where the dust just overtakes and everything mechanical switch moving all right Roger will you copy that copy it again PVA time 3 hours 50 minutes [Music] oh yeah oh boy [Applause] looks like a blocky Rim fresh impact crater right now 17 we're looking at a nominal station nine here you got about uh two five minutes remaining no such thing as a normal station anymore the geology won't let it be normal this may be the first and only one of the Traverse well the geology field training has a fairly long and involved history within NASA it has evolved to a fairly sophisticated and specialized training program it started out based largely on the experience that geologists had had with training students at the University level and it became fairly clear that this was not an effective way to train highly motivated very intelligent men for the specific tasks of exploring the moon in a geologic sense carefully come on look that looks like a pressure right there yeah there's some interesting patterns on the surface so we gradually brought into the program some of the very finest professional teachers in geology it turns out these people as is usually the case with very fine teachers were also some of the top scientific Minds in their particular areas who could give the type of geological information we needed in training but in the context of the kinds of operations and the kinds of constraints that a man would be dealing with on the moon and the combination was unbeatable and we produced I think some outstanding geologic observers in a short time frame who were more than adequately carrying out the job that was assigned to them well I say [Music] go through okay Bob one thing I noticed we do uncover there's a lot of two three four millimeter size uh fragments of glass we're kicking up all over the place yeah yeah I think it is glass cover just glass covers look what's underneath it well I don't know what's underneath it's white come here Gene quickly we can't leave this this may be the youngest mantle I don't believe it three inches below four inches most surface a very light gray material we got some pretty good pictures of it I think okay Eva time five hours 16 minutes the crew will head back toward the lamb [Music] [Music] foreign [Music] [Music] [Music] together become a cohesive Rock living together in a very peaceful manner we'd like to share a piece of this rock with so many of the countries throughout the world we hope that this will be a symbol of what our feelings are put the feelings of the Apollo program are and assemble a mankind that we can live in peace and Harmony in the future [Music] spacecraft that we have climbed down many times over the last three days so that with this plaque is seen again my others do come they will know where it all started here man completed its first exploration of the Moon December 1972 A.D May the spirit of peace in which we came be reflected in the lives of all mankind this is our commemoration that will be here until someone like us until some of you are out there who are the promise of the future come back to read again and to further the expiration and the meaning of Apollo congratulations copy that and Echo your sentiments [Music] I would just like to thank the thousands of people in the Aerospace industry I swear I've given a great deal besides dedication and besides effort to make it all a reality and I God bless you and thank you so much burning shout out of one of the finest running Little Machines I've ever had the pleasure to drive oh what a nice little machine [Music] you ready go ahead you ready for this yeah look at that look at that look at that beautiful looked like it was going a million miles didn't it [Music] this is Gene and I'm on the surface I'd like to just let what I believe history will record that America's challenge of today is Sportsman's Destiny come tomorrow and if we leave the moon and Taurus little we leave it we came and God willing as we shall return Pete and we'll throw mankind godspeed the crew of Apollo 17. [Music] good morning to you [Music] good morning Challenger and uh thank you for the vocal rendition from the Moon there well we wanted to let you know we were thinking about you this morning Gordy [Applause] hey Gordy uh in the tradition of Apollo eight I've got uh familiar poem for you well it's a week before Christmas and all through the lymph and a commander we're stirring not even certain samples were sold in their places with care in hopes that with you they soon will be there Rose such a scattered I sprang for my helmet this to see what was the matter gone on the breath of the surface below is the lecture of objects as if in snow and what do my wandering eyes should appear but a miniature Rover and eight tiny reindeer and a little old driver so Lively and quick I knew in a moment it must be Saint Nick I heard him explain over the hills heated speed Merry Christmas to all and to you all got speed Carter that's the first time I heard that and I gotta say that was beautiful people always said we ought to have a poet's face I don't think we've made it yet all right jack very good [Music] thank you distance Challenger is go for liftoff then we're 50 seconds now and we're go as your Challenger uh your go for leftover okay Master Army is on I've got two good lights 25 degrees per second 25 attitude translation four jet four jet balance couple on dead man dead man hit man attitude control three remote control 99 Pro seated three two one position right away Houston back here you have good friends [Music] just finger [Music] take your final look at the valley at Taurus Mitchell [Music] [Music] hello Houston uh Challenger has a visual on America at about 112 miles looks like you've been flying well up there partner the spacecraft looks good uh you betcha man that challenge was a beautiful vehicle bet you good babe keep it coming you're stable as a rock okay she's looking all right [Music] this is the greatest man in the world right did you see me yeah I can see you right in there yeah good job typically you're probe okay okay let's get this business going let's get in the docking attitude yeah we're getting pretty close now okay here we go goodbye Jack and bye okay [Music] okay open the hatch es beautiful the crew will begin transferring samples and other equipment into the Command Module and begin the process of getting themselves from Challenger into America Challenger or your go for close up okay uh Houston Challenger is going off the air okay Challenger it's been a pleasure talking to you seems like an unfitting finish to a super bird but uh it's got one more job to do Roger that okay here comes the spirals all right three two one March we got it did we get it looks like we got a good separation There She Goes [Music] [Music] foreign [Music] [Music] [Music] foreign [Music] [Music] foreign [Music] [Music] [Music] bringing the world together as one unit so that we can make that step not just as a nation but as a world you're a long way from home we don't want to lose you okay [Music] foreign [Music] [Music] man must explore we will continue to explore and I hope that someday we may all have the opportunity to see mankind enjoy the benefits of the Apollo program thank you this is Apollo control Apollo 17 spacecraft now approaching ever faster to Mother Earth Apollo controls standing by [Music] these were five seconds Roger American hierarchy okay okay my three point one please [Applause] [Music] [Applause] and beginning of blackout was at the predicted time 400 000 feet or approximately 85 miles above the Earth now the completion of Mankind's first evolutionary steps planet Earth and to the universe in doing so he established a tradition of Peace and Freedom within the solar system moved to greet the future [Music] yeah they're blooming [Music] 3.5 [Music] internal recovery it's a beautiful day we've got three good names [Music] [Applause] [Music] Heavens declare your glory O Lord planets the Sun the moon and the stars which you set in place in Humble gratitude we thank you for the safe return from your heavens of these Pioneers in space May their achievements contribute to the unity of mankind and peace for all your people in this holy season amen [Music] going on here in the control center and as the Splashdown was watched in real time from the recovery helicopter a real smooth shots well done young man outstanding to Mark the time at 304 31 ground elapsed time even [Music] [Music] control room here is full of people waiting for that moment when the crew is safely on the deck of the ship to fire up their traditional Splashdown cigars this is Apollo control out at 305 25 ground elapsed time [Music] now it is time to take longer strides time for a great new American Enterprise time for this nation to take a clearly leading role in space achievement which in many ways May hold the key to our future on Earth I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal before this decade is out of Landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to the Earth no single Space Project in this period be more impressive to mankind or more important for the long-range exploration of space and none will be so difficult or expensive to accomplish foreign [Music] foreign [Music]

Channel: Progress - Technology History Documentaries

Views: 15,179

Keywords: Apollo 17 audio, Apollo 17 space travel, Apollo program documentary, Astronaut mission experience, Historic moonwalk, Humanity's lunar expedition, Lunar expedition audio, Lunar landing, Lunar module landing, Moon mission audio, Moon surface exploration, Progress - Technology History Documentaries, Space mission footage, aerospace technology, celestial exploration, cosmic journey, galaxy adventure, lunar exploration, space race, spaceflight history, universe exploration

Id: 4-AhTyCb2dY

Length: 103min 11sec (6191 seconds)

Published: Sun Aug 06 2023