Apollo 17 lunar sample display

File:Moon rock and Apollo 17 flown flag.jpg

The Apollo 17 lunar sample display consists of a Moon rock fragment from a lava Moon stone identified as lunar basalt 70017, the recipient's flag and two small metal plates attached with descriptive messages. A goodwill gift from the Apollo 17 mission was then given by President Richard Nixon in the form of a wooden commemorative plaque display to all fifty U.S. states and U.S. territories, and 135 nations worldwide.

Collection

Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt ended their walk on the Moon in 1972 with a dedication to the young people of Earth and a desire that all "live in peace and harmony in the future". They expressed hope that distribution of pieces of the rock they had collected would bring this worldwide peace and goodwill.

Description

{{Apollo 17 lunar sample display}} They were presented with a letter from Nixon, stating that:

{{quote|"... as we stretch for the stars, we know that we stand also upon the shoulders of many men of many nations here on our own planet. In the deepest sense our exploration of the moon was truly an international effort.

It is for this reason that, on behalf of the people of the United States I present this flag, which was carried to the moon, to the State, and its fragment of the moon obtained during the final lunar mission of the Apollo program.

If people of many nations can act together to achieve the dreams of humanity in space, then surely we can act together to accomplish humanity's dream of peace here on earth. It was in this spirit that the United States of America went to the moon, and it is in this spirit that we look forward to sharing what we have done and what we have learned with all mankind."}}

Fate

{{Further|Stolen and missing Moon rocks|List of Apollo lunar sample displays}}

The New York Times reported in 2012 that gifts of moon rocks were not well tracked or managed by NASA.{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/22/science/space/nasa-tackles-problem-of-missing-moon-rocks.html |title=NASA Searches for Loot That Traveled From Space to Another Void |first1=Manny |last1=Fernandez |work=The New York Times |date=January 21, 2012 |location=Houston, Texas |access-date=November 3, 2012}} Within the US, public gifts require legislation to be transferred, but other nations set their own laws.{{cite web |url=http://www.collectspace.com/resources/moonrocks_apollo11.html |title=Where today are the Apollo 11 goodwill lunar sample displays? |first1=Robert |last1=Pearlman |author-link=Robert Pearlman |publisher=CollectSPACE |access-date=2023-02-06}} Some samples of lunar dust soil from the earlier Apollo 11 and samples from the Apollo 17 missions have been reported missing. Since 2005 entities and people have made concerted efforts to find the displays.{{cite news |url=http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2012/05/14/houston-lawyer-on-quest-to-find-missing-moon-rocks/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120515011430/http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2012/05/14/houston-lawyer-on-quest-to-find-missing-moon-rocks/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=May 15, 2012 |title=Houston lawyer on quest for missing moon rocks |agency=Associated Press |via=Fox News |date=May 14, 2012 |location=Buffalo, Texas |access-date=November 3, 2012}}{{cite news |url=http://www.cnn.com/US/9812/07/moon.rock |title=Customs agents seize 4 billion year old moon rock |date=December 7, 1998 |website=cnn.com |publisher=CNN |access-date=November 3, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20000917184021/http://www.cnn.com/US/9812/07/moon.rock/ |archive-date= September 17, 2000}}{{cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2012-feb-07-la-na-moon-rock-20120208-story.html |work=Los Angeles Times |title=Finding lost moon rocks is his mission |date=February 7, 2012 |first1=Molly |last1=Hennessy-Fiske |access-date=November 3, 2012}} Joseph Gutheinz, a former NASA Office of Inspector General special agent and a professor{{cite news |url=http://article.wn.com/view/2012/05/14/One_mans_quest_to_find_missing_moon_rocks/ |title=One man's quest to find missing moon rocks |date=2012-05-14 |location=Buffalo, Texas |work=Detroit Free Press |access-date=November 3, 2012}} who teaches an online course at the University of Phoenix,{{cite news|url=http://www.columbiatribune.com/news/2010/jul/08/moon-rock-discovery-a-false-alarm/ |title=Moon rock discovery a false alarm: Apollo 17 keepsake still missing after all. |work=Columbia Daily Tribune |first1=Janese |last1=Silvey |date=July 8, 2010 |accessdate=November 4, 2012 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120321165650/http://www.columbiatribune.com/news/2010/jul/08/moon-rock-discovery-a-false-alarm/ |archivedate=March 21, 2012 }} had his students try to locate the displays. Robert Pearlman of collectSPACE has also tracked the displays.

File:ADAH moon rock.jpg|{{center|Alabama display}}

File:Georgia Apollo 17 display.jpg|{{center|Georgia display}}

File:Massachusetts Apollo XVII display.jpg|{{center|Massachusetts display}}

File:British Apollo 17 Goodwill Moon Rock.JPG|{{center|United Kingdom display}}

File:Apollo 17 display 71.2003.061.jpg|{{center|Indiana display}}

File:New Hampshire Apollo 17 Moon Rock.jpg|{{center|New Hampshire display}}

File:To the Moon and Back.jpg|{{center|Austria display}}

File:Arizona's Apollo 17 Goodwill Display.jpg|{{center|Arizona display}}

File:Colorado Apollo 17 Display.jpg|{{center|Colorado display}}

File:Rhode Island Apollo 17 Goodwill moon rock, 1972.jpg|Rhode Island display

File:Tennessee Apollo XVII Display.png|{{center|Tennessee display}}

File:Apollo 17 månsten.jpg|{{center|Sweden display}}

Apollo 17 lunar sample display

Collection

Description

Fate

See also

References

Further reading