What is so special about the photograph taken by Apollo 17?
This translunar coast photograph extends from the Mediterranean Sea area to the Antarctica South polar ice cap. This is the first time the Apollo trajectory made it possible to photograph the South polar ice cap. Almost the entire coastline of Africa is clearly visible.
Is there a real picture of the Earth from space?
Nasa has released the first picture of the Earth that it has taken in 43 years. The picture, which has come from a camera on board the Deep Space Climate Observatory (DSCOVR), is the first picture of the whole Earth that has been seen since 1972.
Is Apollo 17 still on the Moon?
Apollo 17 (December 7 – 19, 1972) was the final mission of NASA’s Apollo program, the most recent time humans have set foot on the Moon or traveled beyond low Earth orbit….Apollo 17.
| Spacecraft properties | |
|---|---|
| Orbits | 75 |
| Lunar lander | |
| Spacecraft component | Lunar module |
| Landing date | December 11, 1972, 19:54:58 UTC |
What was the significance of the 1972 Blue Marble photo?
It is often said that the first full image of the Earth, “Blue Marble”, taken by the Apollo 17 space mission in December 1972, revealed Earth to be precious, fragile and protected only by a wafer-thin atmospheric layer. It reinforced the imperative for better stewardship of our “only home”.
How high do you have to be to see the whole Earth?
You would need to be a minimum of about 3000 miles above the surface to see the whole planet in a glance. That would be far enough for the Earth to fill about 60 degrees of your field of view, so you could see the whole thing comfortably without turning your head.
Did Apollo 17 make it back to Earth?
The craft was launched from Kennedy Space Center on April 11, 1970, but the lunar landing was aborted after an oxygen tank in the service module (SM) failed two days into the mission. The crew instead looped around the Moon and returned safely to Earth on April 17.
What did Apollo 17 find out?
Apollo 17 Mission. The splashdown and recovery of the Apollo 17 crew marked the end of the Apollo flight program. The mission plan was for the spacecraft to land in the Moon’s Taurus-Littrow region near the rim of the Serenitatis Basin, which seemed to have all the elements geologists would want to explore in this final mission.
What were the accomplishments of the Apollo 17 mission?
Fast Facts: Apollo 17. Apollo 17 was the last human expedition to the Moon – so far.
What was the purpose of Apollo 17?
The three basic objectives of Apollo 17 were: To explore and sample the materials and surface features at Taurus-Littrow. To set up and activate experiments on the lunar surface for long-term relay of data. To conduct inflight experiments and photographic tasks.