[Apollo 12] STREAKED SPACE WINDOW: a view from CSM Yankee Clipper en route to the Moon Richard G...

[Apollo 12] STREAKED SPACE WINDOW: a view from CSM Yankee Clipper en route to the Moon Richard Gordon, 14-24 November 1969 Printed 1969. Vintage chromogenic print on fibre-based Kodak paper [NASA image AS12-50-7371]. With 'A Kodak Paper' watermark on the reverse, numbered 'NASA AS12-50-7371' in red in the top margin (issued by NASA Manned Spacecraft Centre, Houston, Texas). 20.3 x 25.4 cm. (8 x 10 in.) Historical context This candid image inside the Apollo 12 Command Module en route to the Moon captures an unexpected challenge—streaked and fogged-up windows. A design flaw was later identified as the cause of this condensation inside the window glass, leading to corrections in subsequent Apollo missions. While the public saw only pristine images of deep space and the Moon, this rare unpublished photograph reveals the less glamorous, yet critical, behind-the-scenes realities of space exploration. As historian Jeffrey Kluger noted, 'Spaceflights were often reconnaissance missions, and dirty portholes could make that job impossible. The public saw only the pretty pictures shot through clear windows, but here the Apollo 12 crew took a shot to show NASA the challenges they faced.' For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com For further information about this lot please visit the lot listing