Word: cernan
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...white parachutes. Then, while a television-equipped helicopter hovered almost directly above it to give the world its first bird's-eye view of a splashdown, the command ship dropped into the gently rolling Pacific. Less than an hour later, Apollo 17's three astronauts-Navymen Gene Cernan and Ron Evans and slightly seasick Civilian Geologist Jack Schmitt-were safely aboard the carrier. "By golly," said Cernan, "it's good to be home...
...lunar chronology. Apollo's cargo of rocks includes fragmented specimens called breccias that may have been formed far back in the moon's history, perhaps as long as 4 billion years ago. Even more important, perhaps, are the intriguing orange soil samples scraped up by Schmitt and Cernan at Shorty Crater. The soil may well provide evidence of relatively recent volcanic activity on the moon and could be the youngest lunar material ever brought back to earth. Said NASA Geologist Farouk El Baz: "The Apollo 17 site should give us clues to the real end of the lunar...
...Apollo's three-day homeward voyage, the astronauts had exceptionally smooth sailing. "America has found some fair winds and following seas," said Cernan after the main engine had successfully lifted the command ship out of lunar orbit. As the spacecraft emerged from behind the moon for the last time, the astronauts aimed their TV camera at the surface below and sent back the first live pictures of features on the backside that are invisible from earth, including the giant Tsiolkovsky Crater (named for the Russian space pioneer). Next day, some 180,000 miles from earth, Command Module Pilot Evans...
...final moments outside the moonship, Cernan held up what he called "a very significant rock, composed of many fragments of all sizes and shapes and colors." Speaking directly to youngsters of 78 nations who had been invited to Houston for the final moon shot, Cernan said that the rock would be divided among their countries "as a symbol that we can live in peace and harmony in the future." Then, after moving back to Challenger, Cernan unveiled a plaque on the ship's descent stage, which would remain behind on the moon. Evoking the words of a similar plaque...
...Gentle. Little more than seven minutes after its spectacular ascent from the lunar surface, Challenger was in lunar orbit, ready for its rendezvous with America. "God, you look pretty," Cernan radioed as Challenger approached the mother ship. Evans maneuvered America so gingerly in the final phases that the first docking contact was too gentle; the latches of the docking mechanism failed to catch. The two ships came together harder on the second try and were firmly joined. Taking their rocks, films and other paraphernalia with them, Cernan and Schmitt climbed through the connecting tunnel and rejoined Evans; the moonwalkers...