[Apollo 17] EUGENE CERNAN KNEELING ON THE MOON AT THE TAURUS-LITTROW SCIENTIFIC SITE (NASA's own...

[Apollo 17] EUGENE CERNAN KNEELING ON THE MOON AT THE TAURUS-LITTROW SCIENTIFIC SITE (NASA's own copy, used and annotated, for the preparation of its final Apollo Science report) Harrison Schmitt, 7-19 December 1972, EVA 1 Printed 1972. Vintage gelatin silver print on fibre-based paper [NASA image AS17-136-20695]. With original editorial labels in the white margins on the recto for publication in NASA's Apollo 17 Preliminary Science Report (NASA SP-330), with traces of previous mounting on the reverse, numbered 'NASA AS17-136-20695' in black in the top margin (issued by NASA Manned Spacecraft Center, Houston, Texas), together with an original NASA sheet indicating directives and notes (figure 4-25) for publication in the report. 20.3 x 25.4 cm. (8 x 10 in.) Historical context One of the only Apollo images showing an astronaut kneeling on the Moon, defying its one sixth gravity. This extraordinary photograph, part of a panoramic sequence captured by Harrison Schmitt at the scientific site (ALSEP site) using B&W magazine 136/H, is NASA's own archival copy, used and annotated for the production of the Apollo 17 Preliminary Science Report (NASA SP-330) on humanity's final voyage to the Moon. In this extremely rare and unreleased image, Apollo 17 Commander Eugene Cernan is seen kneeling on the lunar surface, carefully extracting the deep core sample—a crucial effort to uncover the Moon's subsurface history. This sample, drilled deep into the lunar regolith, would later be used for thermal and neutron probe experiments, offering unprecedented insights into the Moon's interior and geologic past. Beyond him, Wessex Cleft stretches toward the horizon, while the Sculptured Hills rise to the right. To the left of Cernan, the drill-stem rack holds additional equipment, and to his right, Rover tracks mark the astronauts' journey through the desolate lunar landscape. Footnotes: [Apollo 17 Preliminary Science Report caption] FIGURE 4-25. -The CDR inserts a heat flow probe into the borestem during the deployment of the ALSEP. The drill and rack with additional borestems and corestems are to the left of the astronaut. The Heat How experiment measures the heat flow from the interior of the Moon (AS17-136-20695). Literature Apollo 17 Preliminary Science Report (NASA SP-330), figure 4-25 For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com For further information about this lot please visit the lot listing