11
$\begingroup$

I'm reading Gene Cernan's The Last Man on the Moon and he mentioned that the flag they erected at Apollo 17's landing site had been to the Moon before: it was taken to the Moon by Apollo 11, then hung in the Mission Operations Control Room in Houston before being brought along by Apollo 17 to stay on the Moon (alternative source).

This had me wondering: were there other objects that travelled to the Moon more than once?

Improve this question
$\endgroup$
1
  • $\begingroup$ John Young (Apollo 10 and 16) and Eugene Cernan (Apollo 10* and 17) almost made it! *: He was just 15 km from the surface $\endgroup$
    – JuanCa
    Oct 4, 2019 at 19:34

1 Answer 1

Reset to default
10
$\begingroup$

Some Apollo Lunar Sample Rock Containers (ALSRC) have been to the Moon twice according to the Catalog of Apollo Lunar Surface Geological Sampling Tools and Containers:

  • Serial number 1006: Apollo 14 and Apollo 17
  • Serial number 1007: Apollo 14 and Apollo 17
  • Serial number 1009: Apollo 12 and Apollo 16

I didn't spot other items being re-used; for example, the Special Environment Sample Containers all had different serial numbers.

Improve this answer
$\endgroup$
2
  • $\begingroup$ Do you know anything about why that would be done? Seems odd. $\endgroup$
    – Magic Octopus Urn
    Oct 3, 2019 at 14:19
  • 4
    $\begingroup$ @MagicOctopusUrn: No. I suspect they were not needed for storage back on earth and were expensive equipment that was in good shape to be used again. So why build new ones when you have some fine ones around? The document indicates that they were "modified" or "refurbished" since it states 1009 weighed 7200g for Apollo 12 and 6400g for Apollo 16. $\endgroup$
    – DarkDust
    Oct 3, 2019 at 14:32

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge that you have read and understand our privacy policy and code of conduct.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.