#alsep

[newoldstockphotos]

Orion on the Moon

[oupacademic]

The thirtieth of September 1977 marks the end of the Apollo Lunar Surface Experiments Packages (ALSEP) operation. ALSEP is comprised of numerous geophysical instruments which were deployed on the Moon by astronauts during Apollo missions 12, 14, 15, 16, and 17. (The infamous Apollo 13 mission was intended to be the second ALSEP placement, but had to abort its lunar landing after an oxygen tank exploded while the spacecraft was en-route.)

The first ALSEP instruments were placed on the Moon in November 1969 by astronauts Pete Conrad and Alan Bean. Originally designed to operate for 1-2 years after deployment, these instruments ended up working for up to eight years. During operation, ALSEP revealed detailed information about the Moon's surface and internal structure through use of instruments which included an ion detector, seismometer, magnetometer, laser ranging reflector, and solar wind spectrometer.

After eight years in operation, ALSEP shut down mostly due to budgetary considerations, and because by 1977, the power reserves could not run both the transmitter and any other instrument. Much of our scientific knowledge and understanding of the Moon was collected from ALSEP instruments and Soviet moon probes, as well as from photographs taken from space and geological samples retrieved by astronauts.

Image: a15pan11845-7 by NASA. Public Domain via nasa.gov.

[moonwatchuniverse]

Press conference of October 2, 1969 Apollo 12 Lunar Module Pilot Alan Bean demonstrated the Lunar Surface Scientific Experiments he and Commander Pete Conrad would deploy during their lunar landing mission. Bean was wearing an Omega Speedmaster chronograph as he ran through all the experiments within the Apollo Lunar Surface Experiments Package (ALSEP). Apollo astronauts clearly enjoyed wearing the Speedmaster during daily life... (Photo: NASA)

[rjbailey]

Orion on the Moon by NASA on The Commons Via Flickr: Astronaut John W. Young, commander of the Apollo 16 lunar landing mission, works at the Lunar Roving Vehicle (LRV) just prior to deployment of the Apollo Lunar Surface Experiments Package (ALSEP) during the first extravehicular activity (EVA-1) on April 21, 1972. Note the Ultraviolet (UV) Camera/Spectrometer to the right of the Lunar Module (LM) ladder. Also, note the pile of protective/thermal foil under the U.S. flag on the LM which the astronauts pulled away to get to the Modular Equipment Storage Assembly (MESA) bay. While astronauts Young and Charles M. Duke Jr., lunar module pilot; descended in the Apollo 16 LM “Orion” to explore the Descartes highlands landing site on the Moon, astronaut Thomas K. Mattingly II, command module pilot, remained with the Command and Service Modules (CSM) “Casper” in lunar orbit. Image Number: AS16-116-18578 Date: April 21, 1972

[from-the-earth-to-the-moon13]

(4 Feb. 1971) --- These two individuals are examining a seismic reading in the Mission Control Center's ALSEP Room during the Apollo 14 S-IVB impact on the moon. Dr. Maurice Ewing (left) is the director of the Lamont-Doherty Geological Observatory at Columbia University. David Lammlein, a Columbia graduate student, is on the right. The Apollo 14 Saturn IVB stage impacted on the lunar surface at 1:40:54 a.m. (CST), Feb. 4, 1971, about 90 nautical miles south-southwest of the Apollo 12 passive seismometer. The energy release was comparable to 11 tons of TNT. Dr. Gary Latham of the Lamont-Doherty Geological Observatory is the principal investigator for the Passive Seismic Experiment, a component of the Apollo Lunar Surface Experiments Package.

[from-the-earth-to-the-moon13]

Al Bean on the moon with the ALSEP package during Apollo 12 mission.

[from-the-earth-to-the-moon13]

John Young stands at ALSEP deployment site during first EVA