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Moonquakes Surprisingly Comm
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| Title |
Moonquakes Surprisingly Common |
| Explanation |
Why are there so many moonquakes? A recent reanalysis of seismometers [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seismometer ] left on the moon by the Apollo moon landings [ http://history.nasa.gov/ap11ann/introduction.htm ] has revealed a surprising number of moonquakes occurring within 30 kilometers of the surface. In fact, 28 moonquakes [ http://adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-bib_query?bibcode=2005AGUFM.P51A0915N ] were detected in data recorded between 1972 and 1977. These moonquakes [ http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2006/15mar_moonquakes.htm ] were not only strong enough to move furniture [ http://www.maltwood.uvic.ca/hoft/timeline.html ] but the stiff rock of the moon continued vibrating for many minutes, significantly longer than the soft rock earthquakes [ http://www.crustal.ucsb.edu/ics/outreach/understanding/elastic/intro-rebound.html ] on Earth. The cause of the moonquakes remains unknown, with one hypothesis holding that landslides [ http://earthquake.usgs.gov/learning/glossary.php?termID=105&alpha=L ] in craters cause the vibrations. Regardless of the source, future moon buildings [ http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/gallery/images/vision/lunar/ndxpage1.html ] need to be built to withstand the frequent shakings. Pictured above [ http://grin.hq.nasa.gov/ABSTRACTS/GPN-2000-001102.html ] in 1969, Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buzz_Aldrin ] stands besides a recently deployed lunar seismometer [ http://www.lpi.usra.edu/expmoon/Apollo15/A15_Experiments_PSE.html ], looking back toward the lunar landing module [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap030920.html ]. |
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Apollo 17 Lunarscape: A Magn
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| Title |
Apollo 17 Lunarscape: A Magnificent Desolation |
| Explanation |
Buzz Aldrin [ http://www.hq.nasa.gov/alsj/a11/a11.crew.html#buzzbio ], Apollo 11 Lunar Module pilot and the second human to walk on the Moon [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap950922.html ], described the lunar landscape as "a magnificent desolation". Dramatic pictures from the Apollo missions to the lunar surface [ http://www.hq.nasa.gov/alsj/ ] testify to this apt turn of phrase. Near the Apollo 17 landing site, Family Mountain (center background) and the edge of South Massif (left) frame the lunarscape in this photo [ http://images.jsc.nasa.gov/images/pao/AS17/ 10075963.htm ] of astronaut Harrison Schmitt [ http://www.hq.nasa.gov/alsj/a17/ a17.crew.html#jackbio ] working alongside the lunar roving vehicle [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990701.html ]. Schmitt and fellow astronaut Eugene Cernan [ http://www.hq.nasa.gov/alsj/a17/ a17.crew.html#genebio ] were the last to walk on [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap000617.html ] this magnificent desolation. |
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Standing on the Moon
| Title |
Standing on the Moon |
| Explanation |
Pictured, the second person to walk on the Moon [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap950903.html ]: Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin. During this Apollo 11 [ http://www.ksc.nasa.gov/history/apollo/apollo-11/apollo-11.html ] mission, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed on the Moon while Michael Collins circled in the Command Module above. The lunar team erected a plaque on the surface that reads: HERE MEN FROM THE PLANET EARTH, FIRST SET FOOT UPON THE MOON JULY 1969 A.D., WE CAME IN PEACE FOR ALL MANKIND. The Apollo missions [ http://ees5-www.lanl.gov/APOLLO/ ] demonstrated that it is possible to land humans on the Moon [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap950921.html ] and return them safely. |
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Footprints on Another World
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Footprints on Another World |
| Explanation |
On July 20th, 1969 [ http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/ap11ann/ introduction.htm ], humans first set foot on the Moon [ http://seds.lpl.arizona.edu/nineplanets/nineplanets/ luna.html ]. Taken from a window of their Apollo 11 lunar module, the Eagle, this picture shows the footprints in the powdery lunar soil [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap011110.html ] made by astronauts Neil Armstrong [ http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/ap11ann/ kippsphotos/5528.jpg ] and Buzz Aldrin [ http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/ap11ann/ kippsphotos/5390.jpg ]. It has been estimated that one billion people on planet Earth watched [ http://guinan.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/heasarc/videos/ historical.html ] Armstrong step from the lander onto the surface of another world [ http://www.hq.nasa.gov/alsj/ ], making this live transmission one of the highest rated television shows ever. In the foreground at right, a rocket nozzle on the side of the Eagle is seen in silhouette, while beyond an unfurled United States [ http://aesp.nasa.okstate.edu/fieldguide/ ] flag is the television camera, remounted on a stand to better view the landing area. The Apollo missions [ http://www.ksc.nasa.gov/history/apollo/apollo.html ] to the Moon have been described as the result of the greatest technological mobilization in history [ http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/ ]. |
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Apollo 11: Catching Some Sun
| Title |
Apollo 11: Catching Some Sun |
| Explanation |
Bright sunlight [ http://www.clavius.org/index.html ] glints and long dark shadows dramatize [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap000224.html ] this image of the lunar surface [ http://www.hq.nasa.gov/alsj/a11/a11j.html ] taken by Apollo 11 astronaut Neil Armstrong, the first to walk on the Moon [ http://cass.jsc.nasa.gov/expmoon/lunar_missions.html ]. Pictured is the mission's lunar module, the Eagle, and spacesuited lunar module pilot Buzz Aldrin unfurling [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap020720.html ] a long sheet of foil also known as the Solar Wind Collector [ http://www.lpi.usra.edu/expmoon/Apollo11/ A11_Experiments_SWC.html ]. Exposed facing the Sun, the foil trapped atoms streaming outward in the solar wind, ultimately catching a sample of material from the Sun [ http://www.genesismission.org/index.html ] itself. Along with moon rocks and lunar soil samples, the solar wind collector was returned for analysis [ http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/ SP-4214/ch9-6.html ] in earthbound laboratories. |
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Apollo 17 Lunarscape: A Magn
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| Title |
Apollo 17 Lunarscape: A Magnificent Desolation |
| Explanation |
Buzz Aldrin [ http://ees5-www.lanl.gov/APOLLO/a11.crew.html#buzzbio ], Apollo 11 Lunar Module pilot and the second human to walk on the Moon [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap950922.html ] described the lunar landscape as "a magnificent desolation". Dramatic pictures from the Apollo missions to the moon's surface [ http://ees5-www.lanl.gov/APOLLO/ ] testify to this apt turn of phrase. Near the Apollo 17 landing site, Family Mountain (center background) and the edge of South Massif (left) frame the lunarscape in this photo [ http://images.jsc.nasa.gov/images/pao/AS17/10075963.htm ] of astronaut Harrison Schmitt [ http://ees5-www.lanl.gov/APOLLO/a17.crew.html#jackbio ] working alongside the lunar roving vehicle [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap960223.html ]. Schmitt and fellow astronaut Eugene Cernan [ http://ees5-www.lanl.gov/APOLLO/a17.crew.html#genebio ] were the last to walk on [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap950909.html ] this magnificent desolation. |
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Apollo 11: Catching Some Sun
| Title |
Apollo 11: Catching Some Sun |
| Explanation |
Bright sunlight [ http://www.clavius.org/index.html ] glints and long dark shadows dramatize [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap000224.html ] this image of the lunar surface [ http://www.hq.nasa.gov/alsj/a11/a11j.html ] taken by Apollo 11 astronaut Neil Armstrong, the first to walk on the Moon [ http://www.lpi.usra.edu/moon.html ]. Pictured is the mission's lunar module, the Eagle, and spacesuited lunar module pilot Buzz Aldrin unfurling [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap020720.html ] a long sheet of foil also known as the Solar Wind Collector [ http://www.lpi.usra.edu/expmoon/Apollo11/ A11_Experiments_SWC.html ]. Exposed facing the Sun, the foil trapped atoms streaming outward in the solar wind, ultimately catching a sample of material from the Sun [ http://www.genesismission.org/science/module4_solarmax/ index.html ] itself. Along with moon rocks and lunar soil samples, the solar wind collector was returned for analysis in earthbound laboratories [ http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/SP-4214/ ch9-6.html ]. |
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Standing on the Moon
| Title |
Standing on the Moon |
| Explanation |
Humans once walked on the Moon. Pictured above is the second person to stand on the lunar surface: Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin. During this Apollo 11 mission, Neil Armstrong (the first person to walk on the moon) and Buzz Aldrin landed on the Moon while Michael Collins circled in the Command Module above. The lunar team erected a plaque on the surface that reads: HERE MEN FROM THE PLANET EARTH FIRST SET FOOT UPON THE MOON JULY 1969 A.D. WE CAME IN PEACE FOR ALL MANKIND. The Apollo missions demonstrated that it is possible to land humans on the Moon and return them safely. |
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